royalty

American  

[roi-uhl-tee] / ˈrɔɪ əl ti /

noun

plural

royalties

1. royal persons collectively.

2. royal status, dignity, or power; sovereignty.

   to be elevated to royalty.

3. a person of royal lineage; member of a royal family.

4. Archaic. royalties, prerogatives, rights, or symbolic emblems of a king, queen, or other sovereign.

5. a royal domain; kingdom; realm.

6. character or quality proper to or befitting a sovereign; nobility.

7. the most well-known and admired member or members of a particular field or category.

   Her parents are Hollywood royalty. The brand is royalty among champagnes.

8. a compensation or portion of the proceeds paid to the owner of a right, as a patent or oil or mineral right, for the use of it.

9. an agreed portion of the income from a work paid to its author, composer, etc., usually a percentage of the retail price of each copy sold.

10. a royal right, as over minerals, granted by a sovereign to a person or corporation.

11. the payment made for such a right.

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royalty British  

/ ˈrɔɪəltɪ /

noun

1. the rank, power, or position of a king or queen

2. 1. royal persons collectively

   2. one who belongs to the royal family

3. any quality characteristic of a monarch; kingliness or regal dignity

4. a percentage of the revenue from the sale of a book, performance of a theatrical work, use of a patented invention or of land, etc, paid to the author, inventor, or proprietor

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royalty Cultural  

1. A payment made for some right or privilege, as when a publisher pays a royalty to an author for the author's granting the publisher the right to sell the author's book.

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Other Word Forms

• nonroyalty
  noun
• preroyalty
  noun

Etymology

Origin of royalty

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English roialte, from Middle French, Old French roialté, derivative of roial; see origin at royal, -ty ²

Explanation

Royalty is a good word for describing a family of kings, queens, princes, and princesses. If you are in the music business, you may expect a payment, or royalty every time your song is played. How's that for royal treatment? The noun royalty means a group of royals, or kings and their extended families. Queen Elizabeth of England is a member of Britain's royalty, for example. You can also use royalty to describe the payment a writer receives whenever her book is sold, or that a musician gets when his song is played in a grocery store. The word comes from the Latin regalis, "regal," which in turn comes from rex, "king."

Example Sentences

Royalty from AI data centers more than doubled year-over-year.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 6, 2026

He shares eldest daughter Royalty with ex-girlfriend and model Nia Guzman, son Aeko with ex-girlfriend and model Ammika Harris and youngest daughter Lovely with esthetician Diamond Brown.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 27, 2026

Shares of Gold Royalty have gained 208.9% in value in 2025.

From Barron's • Nov. 26, 2025

The Met was contacted by the watchdog last Friday, which informed the force that it was investigating alleged bets made by a police constable from the Met's Royalty and Specialist Protection Command.

From BBC • Jun. 19, 2024

To these young people, a sight of Arthur as he bunted in the greenwood was like seeing the idea of Royalty.

From "The Once and Future King" by T. H. White

Related Words

• fee
• payment
• percentage
• portion
• share