loyalty
Americannoun
plural
loyaltiesnoun
-
the state or quality of being loyal
-
(often plural) a feeling of allegiance
Related Words
Loyalty, allegiance, fidelity all imply a sense of duty or of devoted attachment to something or someone. Loyalty connotes sentiment and the feeling of devotion that one holds for one's country, creed, family, friends, etc. Allegiance applies particularly to a citizen's duty to their country, or, by extension, one's obligation to support a party, cause, leader, etc. Fidelity implies unwavering devotion and allegiance to a person, principle, etc
Other Word Forms
- nonloyalty noun
- overloyalty noun
- unloyalty noun
Etymology
Origin of loyalty
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English loialte, from Middle French. See loyal, -ty 2
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
"She had a warmth and loyalty that was rare, a heart that gave even when she had been hurt."
From BBC
Stay put rather than starting fresh somewhere where the people above you won’t have loyalty to you and those below you will resent you.
He was funny, he was protective and he carried himself with a quiet strength and loyalty that made us so proud to call him our son.
From BBC
This, say his defenders, is the King putting to one side whatever family loyalty he may feel.
From BBC
Zhang’s arrest on Jan. 19 marked a stunning fall for a man whose political lineage and loyalty once made him the bedrock of the Chinese ruler’s military flank.
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
