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
Etymology
Origin of loyalty
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English loialte, from Middle French. See loyal, -ty 2
Explanation
A person who feels loyalty to a nation, cause, or person feels a sense of allegiance, commitment, dedication toward them. Loyalty is — you guessed it! — the quality of being loyal. People demonstrate their loyalty to a sports team by cheering for it, win or lose. People demonstrate their loyalty to a political party by voting only for the people of that party. Brand loyalty is the notion (or hope) that once consumers identify strongly with a particular brand or product, like a car or computer, they'll stick with that brand or maker when it comes time to buy new products.
Vocabulary lists containing loyalty
American Naturalization Test, List 2
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Allegiant
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Medieval Christendom, Lessons 3–5
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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.
As McBrien explained, many loyalty programs use the same surveillance pricing algorithms, but instead of directly raising prices on certain individuals they will raise prices altogether then only offer selective coupons.
From Salon • May 18, 2026
But “for really driving loyalty, if you’re going for the quick traffic hit, it won’t be sustained. That’s proven over and over again.”
From MarketWatch • May 14, 2026
Or maybe that’s just from Frenchie’s perspective, where it’s all about family, loyalty and protecting the ones you love.
From Los Angeles Times • May 13, 2026
“Ideological loyalty was the criteria for both recruiters and recruits,” Golkar said.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 13, 2026
Why should I feel any sense of loyalty to them?
From "From Twinkle, with Love" by Sandhya Menon
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.
