Langimage
English

legendize

|leg-end-ize|

C2

🇺🇸

/ˈlɛdʒənˌaɪz/

🇬🇧

/ˈlɛdʒ(ə)nˌaɪz/

make into a legend

Etymology
Etymology Information

'legendize' originates from the English noun 'legend' (from Latin 'legenda', literally 'things to be read') combined with the productive verbal suffix '-ize' (from Greek '-izein' via Late Latin/Old French), where 'legend' referred to a narrative or account and '-ize' meant 'to make' or 'to render'.

Historical Evolution

'legend' comes from Latin 'legenda' > Old French 'legende' > Middle English 'legend'. The verbal formation using '-ize' is a modern English productive process (from Greek/Latin/French), producing 'legendize' in modern English to mean 'to make into a legend' or related senses.

Meaning Changes

Initially, 'legend' meant 'things to be read' or 'a narrative' and later came to mean a traditional or popular story often about heroes; over time the derived verb 'legendize' developed to mean 'to turn into a legend' (and by extension in technical contexts 'to add a legend/caption').

Meanings by Part of Speech

Noun 1

the act or process of making something into a legend; the noun form of 'legendize'.

The legendization of local heroes often obscures historical facts.

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Noun 2

a person who legendizes; one who turns events or people into legends (agent noun).

Some journalists act as legendizers when they repeatedly present a figure in heroic terms.

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Verb 1

to make someone or something into a legend; to represent or treat (a person, event, or thing) as legendary or mythic, often by embellishing or glorifying details.

Biographers sometimes legendize their subjects, smoothing over flaws to create a heroic narrative.

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Verb 2

to add a legend, key, or explanatory caption to a map, chart, figure, or illustration (i.e., provide labels or a legend for clarity).

Please legendize the chart so readers can understand the color coding.

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Adjective 1

made into a legend; mythologized or represented as legendary.

The legendized account omitted mundane but important details.

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Last updated: 2025/10/05 14:00