royal

American  

[roi-uhl] / ˈrɔɪ əl /

adjective

1. of or relating to a king, queen, or other sovereign.

   royal power; a royal palace.

2. descended from or related to a king or line of kings.

   a royal prince.

3. noting or having the rank of a king or queen.

4. established or chartered by or existing under the patronage of a sovereign.

   a royal society.

5. (initial capital letter) serving or subject to a king, queen, or other sovereign.

6. proceeding from or performed by a sovereign.

   a royal warrant.

7. appropriate to or befitting a sovereign; magnificent; stately.

   royal splendor.

   Synonyms:

   majestic

   Antonyms:

   servile

8. (usually initial capital letter) in the service of the monarch or of the Commonwealth.

   Royal Marines; Royal Air Force.

9. fine; excellent.

   in royal spirits.

10. Informal. extreme or persistent; unmitigated.

    a royal nuisance; a royal pain.

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noun

royals plural

1. Nautical. a sail set on a royal mast.

2. Informal. a royal person; member of the royalty.

3. Chiefly British. Usually royals. a member of England's royal family.

4. a size of printing paper, 20 × 25 inches (51 × 64 centimeters).

5. a size of writing paper, 19 × 24 inches (48 × 61 centimeters).

6. Numismatics. any of various former coins, as the real or ryal.

royal British  

/ ˈrɔɪəl /

adjective

1. of, relating to, or befitting a king, queen, or other monarch; regal

2. (prenominal; often capital) established, chartered by, under the patronage or in the service of royalty

   the Royal Society of St George

3. being a member of a royal family

4. above the usual or normal in standing, size, quality, etc

5. informal unusually good or impressive; first-rate

6. nautical just above the topgallant (in the phrase royal mast )

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noun

1. informal (sometimes capital) a member of a royal family

2. Also called: royal stag.  a stag with antlers having 12 or more branches

3. nautical a sail set next above the topgallant, on a royal mast

4. a size of printing paper, 20 by 25 inches

5. Also called: small royal.  a size of writing paper, 19 by 24 inches

6. any of various book sizes, esp 6 1/ 4 by 10 inches ( royal octavo ), 6 3/ 4 by 10 1/ 4 inches ( super royal octavo ), and (chiefly Brit) 10 by 12 1/ 2 inches ( royal quarto ) and 10 1/ 4 by 13 1/ 2 inches ( super royal quarto )

Synonym Usage

See kingly.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• antiroyal
  adjective
• nonroyal
  adjective
• preroyal
  adjective
• pseudoroyal
  adjective
• quasi-royal
  adjective
• nonroyally
  adverb
• preroyally
  adverb
• pseudoroyally
  adverb
• quasi-royally
  adverb
• royally
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• royals
  plural

Etymology

Origin of royal

First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English, from Middle French, from Latin rēgālis “kingly,” equivalent to rēg- (stem of rēx ) “king” + -ālis adjective suffix; see regal ¹, -al ¹

Explanation

Your highness! Anything royal has to do with a king or queen. The official announcement a queen makes is a royal declaration. Unofficially, royal can mean fit for a king or queen, like a royal welcome with cake and balloons. Queen Elizabeth's corgis could be called the royal dogs, and the people who work at Buckingham Palace are the royal staff. Queen Elizabeth herself is royal — when royal describes a person it means someone who's a queen or king or belongs to a monarch's family. You can also use it sarcastically by saying someone’s a royal pain. No royalty necessary.

Example Sentences

Qatar's royal family controversially gifted the retrofitted plane to the United States last year, after Trump complained about the embarrassing state of the older US aircraft that transport the president.

From Barron's • Jul. 7, 2026

It is the third, and set to be final, case brought by the Duke of Sussex in his acrimonious legal battle with British tabloids, which has further strained relations with the royal family.

From Barron's • Jul. 7, 2026

The Swedish royal family paid a rare visit to Canada last year as part of the country’s effort to pitch Saab’s Gripen jet fighters as an alternative to Lockheed Martin’s F-35s.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jul. 6, 2026

Prince Harry has been "turned away from the palace", the Daily Express reports, following a "chaotic war of words between the Duke of Sussex's spokesman and royal aides".

From BBC • Jul. 6, 2026

Nhamo rather hoped this meant she came from a royal family, but Grandmother said the old kings had dozens of wives, so of course they had a multitude of children.

From "A Girl Named Disaster" by Nancy Farmer

Related Words

• aristocratic
• dignified
• illustrious
• imperial
• magnificent
• noble
• stately