legends

Definition of legendsnext
plural of legend
1
as in tables
an explanatory list of the symbols on a map or chart the legend indicated that a large circle represented a major city, while a small circle stood for a small town

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2
as in captions
an explanation or description accompanying a pictorial illustration the legend in the science textbook indicated that the accompanying picture had been enlarged by 1000%

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3
as in myths
a traditional but unfounded story that gives the reason for a current custom, belief, or fact of nature some ancient civilizations had legends about spirits that inhabited trees and rocks

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4
as in mythologies
the body of customs, beliefs, stories, and sayings associated with a people, thing, or place that story of how the world came to be has long been part of Native American legend

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of legends New York Mets legends Gary Carter and Bud Harrelson both managed the team, with the latter also being a part-owner. Scott Thompson, FOXNews.com, 27 Apr. 2026 Hat tip to the production legends Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis (best known for lacing Janet Jackson, Usher, and other R&B titans with hits over the past several decades), who add to the track’s timeless appeal. Adelle Platon, VIBE.com, 27 Apr. 2026 Along the way, a young Michael meets (and wows) music industry legends like Berry Gordy (Larenz Tate) and Quincy Jones (Kendrick Sampson) and embarks on his mega-successful solo career. Tommy McArdle, PEOPLE, 26 Apr. 2026 Ready to move on from the franchise legends who carried you to new heights? Corey Masisak, Denver Post, 25 Apr. 2026 As Saturday’s opening of Six Flags Great America’s 50th season approached, Walther recalled the night more than 30 years ago that made him and his friends local legends, as well as permanent exiles from the popular theme park. Joseph States, Chicago Tribune, 24 Apr. 2026 Shannon and Chastain do their own singing in the show, which succeeds in humanizing these two troubled music legends. David Faris, TheWeek, 24 Apr. 2026 In a nod to the hotel’s backyard, a wall of fame steps off the lobby pays tribute to assorted legends of Ojai, including renowned mountaineer and environmentalist Rick Ridgeway, ceramicists Otto and Vivika Heino, and author Aldous Huxley. Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 23 Apr. 2026 For a true behind-the-scenes look into horse racing and raising, Mint Julep Tours pairs a thoroughbred farm visit (complete with racing legends) with a distillery tour and tasting (at either Buffalo Trace or Bulleit). Hillary Richard, Robb Report, 23 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for legends
Noun
  • Reporters, editors and guests of the many publications in attendance filed in, searching for their tables, yapping with old – or possibly new – friends and lining up to get a photo in front of the main table.
    Rebecca Morin, USA Today, 26 Apr. 2026
  • The Secret Service and other authorities swarmed the banquet hall at the Washington Hilton as guests ducked under tables by the hundreds.
    Bridget Byrne, Baltimore Sun, 26 Apr. 2026
Noun
  • The editor’s captions tell us that there were — take a deep breath — hundreds of sets of dentures turned in each year, fewer than half of which were eventually claimed.
    Christopher Bonanos, Curbed, 28 Apr. 2026
  • Curate favorite photos from different years, add simple captions or dates and keep the design clean and modern.
    Lauren Jarvis-Gibson, Sacbee.com, 25 Apr. 2026
Noun
  • There’s something for everybody in myths.
    Marah Eakin, Vulture, 21 Apr. 2026
  • The first is the broader destigmatization of cannabis, as state after state dismantles old laws and outdated myths.
    Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN Money, 19 Apr. 2026
Noun
  • His works are also challenging to date precisely, due in part to his displacement and transpacific migration, and the Spencer show reflects this by abandoning a chronological framework in favor of a thematic exploration of his own mythologies.
    Tessa Solomon, ARTnews.com, 24 Apr. 2026
  • From the beginning, this project set out to interrogate the mythologies surrounding artificial intelligence and to make visible the human choices embedded within these systems.
    Matthew Carey, Deadline, 13 Mar. 2026
Noun
  • Eco effort Canoe Place has eliminated single-use plastics on the property, uses bamboo room keys and refillable bath amenities, and employs energy-efficient lighting and HVAC systems; EV charging ports are available to guests.
    Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 29 Apr. 2026
  • He was wanted after allegedly robbing a Family Dollar store on Saturday morning and pistol-whipping one of their female employees, taking her wallet and keys.
    Adam Sabes, FOXNews.com, 29 Apr. 2026
Noun
  • His first collection, Death of a Naturalist, was published by Faber and Faber in 1966 and was followed by eleven other volumes of poetry, as well as collections of literary criticism, anthologies, translations, and verse plays.
    Nick Laird, The New York Review of Books, 25 Apr. 2026
  • These considerations led us to add the volume The Unknown Kerouac, with early journals and translations from the joual, to our ongoing multivolume Kerouac edition.
    Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 24 Apr. 2026
Noun
  • That Niall finds Ruben so alluring is natural to Gadd, who believes the notion of a valiant male figure has been bred into everyone via fables and fairy tales.
    Carlos Aguilar, Los Angeles Times, 23 Apr. 2026
  • Fortnum & Mason does not need a goose from Aesop’s fables to have a golden egg.
    Air Mail, Air Mail, 4 Apr. 2026
Noun
  • The kallikantzaroi are a group of blind, black goblins who live underground during most of the year sawing at the world tree – a motif throughout various folklores that connects the heavens to the Earth.
    Carlie Procell, USA Today, 20 Dec. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Legends.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/legends. Accessed 2 May. 2026.

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