ENGLISH DICTIONARY

Legalese

Definition, Meaning & Examples

Pronunciation /ˌliː.ɡəˈliːz/ · Part of speech noun

Quick meaning: Legalese is a noun meaning (informal, derogatory) Technical jargon common in the legal profession; the argot of lawyers.

Meaning

(informal, derogatory) Technical jargon common in the legal profession; the argot of lawyers.

More Meanings

  1. (informal, derogatory) Wordy, ostentatious talk or writing that resembles legal writing, especially when confusing to laypeople; bureaucratese; officialese.

Example Sentences

It is also his considered opinion that a condition precedent to any legislative action is that those best qualified to pronounce on the merits of a popular demand examine it in all its aspects. That is good Menzian legalese, as pompous as parody permits.

Synonyms for legalese

Depending on context, synonyms include lawspeak, legalspeak.

Related Words

Related dictionary entries include thereto, lawyerese, legalspeak, lawyerspeak, jargonese, slanguage.

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Sources & Attribution

FreeDictionaryAPI.com / Wiktionary · Original source · CC BY-SA 4.0

Dictionary data is provided by FreeDictionaryAPI.com and sourced from Wiktionary under its stated license.