leg·end / ˈlejənd/ • n. 1. a traditional story sometimes popularly regarded as historical but unauthenticated: the legend of King Arthur according to legend he banished all the snakes from Ireland. 2. an extremely famous or notorious person, esp. in a particular field: the man was a living legend a Wall Street legend.3. an inscription, esp. on a coin or medal. ∎  a caption: a picture of a tiger with the legend “Go ahead, make my day.” ∎  the wording on a map or diagram explaining the symbols used: see legend under Fig. 1.4. hist. the story of a saint's life: the mosaics illustrate the legends of the saints.• adj. very well known: his speed and ferocity in attack were legend.

Legend ★★ 1986 (PG)

A colorful, unabashedly Tolkien-esque fantasy about the struggle to save an innocent waif from the Prince of Darkness. Set in a land packed with unicorns, magic swamps, bumbling dwarves and rainbows. Produced in Great Britain. 89m/C VHS, DVD . GB Tom Cruise, Mia Sara, Tim Curry, David Bennent, Billy Barty, Alice Playten; D: Ridley Scott; M: Jerry Goldsmith.

Legend (Ger. Legende). Title given to short comps. of lyrical or epic character. Well-known examples are Dvořák's Legends, Op.59 (orch. from pf. duet) and Sibelius's 4 Lemminkäinen Legends for orch., Op.22.

legend
A. story of a saint's life or collection of these XIV; book of liturgical lessons XV; nonhistorical story;

B. inscription, motto XVII. — (O)F. légende — medL. legenda, prop. ‘things to be read’, n. pl. of gerundive of legere read (see LECTION), taken as fem. sg.
So legendary XVI. — medL. legendārius (sb. —ium).

legend a traditional story sometimes popularly regarded as historical but not authenticated. This sense dates from the early 17th century; in Middle English, the word was used to denote the story of a saint's life, and came via Old French from medieval Latin legenda ‘things to be read’.
a legend in their own lifetime a very famous or notorious person; someone whose fame is comparable to that of a hero of legend or about whom similar stories are told.