Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English homepage

legalese

 noun
     
NEW! See related topics: LINGUISTICS
le‧gal‧ese [uncountable]
informalSL language used by lawyers that is difficult for most people to understand
WORD FOCUS: language WORD FOCUS: language
dialect the form of a language that is spoken in a particular area
slang informal words used by people who belong to a particular group, for example young people, criminals etc
jargon words used by people who do a particular job or are interested in a particular subject, which ordinary people cannot easily understand
terminology words used in a particular subject such as science or medicine
journalese language often used in newspapers
legalese disapproving language used by lawyers or in legal documents, which is difficult for ordinary people to understand

➔ See also language
Definition from the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
Advanced Learner's Dictionary.
 
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