loyal

American  

[loi-uhl] / ˈlɔɪ əl /

adjective

1. faithful to one's sovereign, government, or state.

   a loyal subject.

   Synonyms:

   patriotic

   Antonyms:

   treacherous, faithless, disloyal, treasonous, traitorous

2. faithful to one's oath, commitments, or obligations.

   to be loyal to a vow.

   Synonyms:

   true, steadfast, staunch, devoted, constant

3. faithful to any leader, party, or cause, or to any person or thing conceived as deserving fidelity.

   a loyal friend.

4. characterized by or showing faithfulness to commitments, vows, allegiance, obligations, etc..

   loyal conduct.

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loyal British  

/ ˈlɔɪəl /

adjective

1. having or showing continuing allegiance

2. faithful to one's country, government, etc

3. of or expressing loyalty

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Related Words

See faithful.

Other Word Forms

• loyally adverb
• loyalness noun
• nonloyal adjective
• nonloyally adverb
• overloyal adjective
• overloyally adverb
• quasi-loyal adjective
• quasi-loyally adverb
• superloyal adjective
• superloyally adverb
• unloyal adjective
• unloyally adverb

Etymology

Origin of loyal

First recorded in 1525–35; from Middle French, Old French loial, lei(a)l, from Latin lēgālis legal

Example Sentences

There is a bleak sameness to their contents—desperate pleas to be spared as innocents, loyal to the party and wrongly accused.

From The Wall Street Journal

For he had become a Christian, some forty years earlier, without ceasing in the least to be a loyal Jew.

From Literature

He felt the fine light bones beneath the dense winter fur; the fierce beat of a loyal heart.

From Literature

They each have American owners and fanatically loyal supporters.

From Los Angeles Times

His parents were his most loyal fans, along with his three older brothers.

From BBC

Related Words

• ardent
• devoted
• dutiful
• patriotic
• staunch
• steadfast
• true
• trustworthy