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

See Examples For:

royal royals

Safadi was referring to the 2021 defense agreement that allows U.S. forces unfettered access to 12 facilities in Jordan, including five air bases; the agreement was approved via royal decree and bypassed parliament.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 28, 2026

It was made up of more than 13,000 soldiers of fortune, recruited from many Greek cities by Cyrus the Younger, a Persian royal, with promises of high pay.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 27, 2026

Qatar's royal family donated the luxury airliner last year after Trump complained about the state of the two aging jets that have served as the US presidential plane since 1990.

From Barron's ● Jul. 20, 2026

The royal family payed tribute to the team's talent, determination and historic achievement.

From BBC ● Jul. 20, 2026

The most royal visitor we ever received was the tax collector, and he never brought a procession.

From "Rump: The (Fairly) True Story of Rumpelstilskin" by Liesl Shurtliff

Asahiro Kuni, 81, a member of one of the 11 imperial branches, has also said he would advise his grandchildren to refuse the opportunity of becoming royals.

From Barron's ● Jul. 17, 2026

But the questions are still about his relationship with other royals and whether or not he will meet his father, King Charles III.

From BBC ● Jul. 7, 2026

It was the third, and set to be final, case brought by the Duke of Sussex in his acrimonious legal battle with the British press, that has further strained relations with the royals.

From Barron's ● Jul. 6, 2026

Some of the changes to the interiors include the removal of Arabic-language exit signs and the contemporary artwork once enjoyed by the Qatari royals, The Wall Street Journal previously reported.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 1, 2026

They often go to the market there when the king visits, to sell her wares to the Silver merchants and nobles who follow the royals like ducklings.

From "Red Queen" by Victoria Aveyard

Related Words

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