noun

1. a linking up or connecting of two or more separate entities or of the parts, as military units, of a whole so that they can work together effectively
2. an illicit love affair
3. in spoken French, the linking of words, under certain conditions, by pronouncing the final consonant, ordinarily silent, of one word as though it were the initial consonant of the following word, as in the phrase chez elle (pronounced s̸hā zelʹ)
4. a person who functions as a connection, as between persons or groups

Etymology: Fr < OFr < L ligato < ligare, to bind: see ligature