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Webster 1913 Edition

Royal

Roy′al

,
Adj.
[OE.
roial
,
riall
,
real
, OF.
roial
.
reial
, F.
royal
, fr. L.
regalis
, fr.
rex
,
regis
, king. See
Rich
, and cf.
regal
,
real
a coin,
Rial
.]
1.
Kingly; pertaining to the crown or the sovereign; suitable for a king or queen; regal;
as,
royal
power or prerogative;
royal
domains; the
royal
family;
royal
state
.
2.
Noble; generous; magnificent; princely.
How doth that
royal
merchant, good Antonio?
Shakespeare
3.
Under the patronage of royality; holding a charter granted by the sovereign;
as, the
Royal
Academy of Arts; the
Royal
Society
.
Battle royal
.
See under
Battle
.
–
Royal bay
(Bot.)
,
the classic laurel (
Laurus nobilis
.)
–
Royal eagle
.
(Zool.)
See
Golden eagle
, under
Golden
.
–
Royal fern
(Bot.)
,
the handsome fern
Osmunda regalis
. See
Osmund
.
–
Royal mast
(Naut.)
,
the mast next above the topgallant mast and usually the highest on a square-rigged vessel. The royal yard and royal sail are attached to the royal mast.
–
Royal metal
,
an old name for gold.
–
Royal palm
(Bot.)
,
a magnificent West Indian palm tree (
Oreodoxa regia
), lately discovered also in Florida.
–
Royal pheasant
.
See
Curassow
.
–
Royal purple
,
an intense violet color, verging toward blue.
–
Royal tern
(Zool.)
,
a large, crested American tern (
Sterna maxima
).
–
Royal tiger
.
(Zool.)
See
Tiger
.
–
Royal touch
,
the touching of a diseased person by the hand of a king, with the view of restoring to health; – formerly extensively practiced, particularly for the scrofula, or king’s evil.
Syn. – Kingly; regal; monarchical; imperial; kinglike; princely; august; majestic; superb; splendid; illustrious; noble; magnanimous.

Roy′al

,
Noun.
1.
Printing and writing papers of particular sizes. See under
paper
,
Noun.
2.
(Naut.)
A small sail immediately above the topgallant sail.
Totten.
3.
(Zool.)
One of the upper or distal branches of an antler, as the third and fourth tynes of the antlers of a stag.
4.
(Gun.)
A small mortar.
5.
(Mil.)
One of the soldiers of the first regiment of foot of the British army, formerly called the Royals, and supposed to be the oldest regular corps in Europe; – now called the Royal Scots.
6.
An old English coin. See
Rial
.

Webster 1828 Edition

Royal

ROY'AL

,
Adj.
[L. regalis, from rex, king. See Reck and Right.]
1.
Kingly; pertaining to a king; regal; as royal power or prerogative; a royal garden; royal domains; the royal family.
2.
Becoming a king; magnificent; as royal state.
3.
Noble; illustrious.
How doth that royal merchant, good Antonio?

ROY'AL

, n.
1.
A large kind of paper. It is used as a noun or an adjective.
2.
Among seamen, a small sail spread immediately above the top-gallant-sail; sometimes termed the top-gallant-royal.
3.
One of the shoots of a stag's head.
4.
In artillery, a small mortar.
5.
In England, one of the soldiers of the first regiment of foot, called the royals, and supposed to be the oldest regular corps in Europe.

Definition 2024

Royal

Royal

See also: royal

English

Proper noun

Royal

  1. A surname​.
  2. A male given name from the surname, or from the word "royal".
    • 1974 Patrick White, Five-Twenty, Shorter Novels and Stories, Cape 1974, ISBN 0224009923, page 173
      Royal - he had been his mother's little king. Most of his mates called him "Roy". Perhaps only her and Mrs Natwick had stuck to the christened name, they felt it suited.

Noun

Royal ‎(plural Royals)

  1. (soccer) someone connected with Reading Football Club, as a fan, player, coach etc.
  2. A person in a royal family, as the Prince of Wales.

Adjective

Royal

  1. Used in terms of address or reference to members of a royal family.
  2. (Britain, by extension) Used in the names of organisations within the British government, as, the Royal Navy, Royal Mail.

Anagrams

royal

royal

See also: Royal

English

Alternative forms

Adjective

royal ‎(comparative more royal, superlative most royal)

  1. Of or relating to a monarch or their family.
    • 1909, Archibald Marshall, The Squire's Daughter, chapterI:
      He tried to persuade Cicely to stay away from the ball-room for a fourth dance. […] But she said she must go back, and when they joined the crowd again her partner was haled off with a frightened look to the royal circle, […]
    • 2011, Marilyn Price, Grandma's Cookies (page 7)
      On the first Friday morning of his kingship he went into the kitchen and called for his royal chef.
  2. Having the air or demeanour of a monarch.
  3. (nautical) In large sailing ships, of a mast right above the topgallant mast and its sails.
    royal mast;  royal sail
  4. (boxing, military) Free-for-all, especially involving multiple combatants.
  5. (informal) Used as an intensifier.
    a royal pain in the neck

Synonyms

Derived terms

Related terms

Translations

Noun

royal ‎(plural royals)

  1. A royal person; a member of a royal family.
  2. (paper, printing) A standard size of printing paper, measuring 25 by 20 inches.
  3. (dated) The Australian decimal currency intended to replace the pound in 1966; was changed to "dollar" before it was actually circulated.
  4. The fourth tine of an antler's beam.
  5. A stag with twelve points (six on each antler).
  6. (nautical) In large sailing ships, square sail over the topgallant sail.
  7. An old English gold coin, the rial.
  8. (military) A small mortar.
  9. (card games) In auction bridge, a royal spade.

Translations

See also

Anagrams

French

Etymology

From Middle French roial, from Old French roial, from earlier reial, real, from very early Old French (c. 880) regiel, from Latin rēgālis, from rēg-, the stem of rēx ‎(“king”). Equivalent to roi +‎ -al.

Pronunciation

Adjective

royal m ‎(feminine singular royale, masculine plural royaux, feminine plural royales)

  1. royal (of or relating to a monarch or their family)

Related terms

Middle French

Adjective

royal m ‎(feminine singular royale, masculine plural royaulx, feminine plural royales)

  1. royal (of or relating to a monarch or their family)

Etymology

A habitational surname, shaped by folk etymology, from places in England, Riehale, Righale, Ryhill and Ryall, Old English ryge ‎(“rye”) + hyll ‎(“hill”), and Royle, rā ‎(“roe”) + hyll ‎(“hill”).

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