Skip to main content
legal right

legal right

48 3.2
Something a person can do or have because the law allows it
  • noun
  • /ˈliːɡəl raɪt/
  • Formal
: derecho
  • Workers, for example, reasserted their legal right to strike, which they had never been allowed to exercise.
  • protect legal rights
  • give legal rights
  • claim a legal right

Then he has a legal right to have people do his bidding.

Autoplay Next

Examples

  • I'm standing on my legal rights.

  • The party entered into dialogue with students, admitting their legal right to hold demonstrations.

    Academic text (1992)
  • These men have clear and legal right to strike.

  • We're well within our legal rights.

  • You have no legal rights.

  • Citizens of different countries may be bound by national policies and experience specific legal rights related to online privacy.

    Academic text (2015)
  • Seeking asylum is a legal right of all people.

  • Historians have reached a consensus that black citizens suffered a loss of legal rights during the Jim Crow era.

    Academic text (2017)
  • Eviction, however, is not always justified, and tenants have some legal rights in this regard.

    Academic text (1991)
  • Everyone should know their legal rights when entering into a contract.

Synonyms

right
vslegal right
∞ 2.3

Permission given by law or moral rule to have something

is limited to claims recognized and protected by law rather than moral claims
entitlement
vslegal right
  • Formal
142 5.1

A right under law or contract to get money

covers any legal claim, not only those for benefits under law or contract

How Protected

constitutional right
  • Formal
84 4.1
legal right
  • Formal
48 3.2

Surface Forms

legal right singular
legal rights plural

Morphology

legal + right

The meaning is fully compositional: 'legal' (pertaining to law) modifies 'right' (an entitlement) to indicate a right recognized or protected by law. This adjective+noun combination follows normal English semantics and is cross-linguistically common, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents can readily infer the meaning.

Etymology

Legal right puts together legal, meaning 'from the law', and right, meaning 'a fair claim'. Imagine someone holding a paper with a judge's stamp that acts like a shield to protect them. So, legal right means a right that the law accepts and protects.