royal

See also: Royal

English

Alternative forms

• r. (abbreviation)
• roial, roiall, royall (obsolete)

Etymology

Borrowing from Old French roial (Modern French royal), from Latin rēgālis, from rēx (“king”). Doublet of regal (“befitting a king”) and real (“unit of currency”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈɹɔɪəl/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɔɪəl

Adjective

royal (comparative more royal, superlative most royal)

1. Of or relating to a monarch or their family.
   • 1909, Archibald Marshall, The Squire's Daughter, chapterI:

     He tried to persuade Cicely to stay away from the ball-room for a fourth dance. […] But she said she must go back, and when they joined the crowd again her partner was haled off with a frightened look to the royal circle, […]

   • 2011, Marilyn Price, Grandma's Cookies (page 7)

     On the first Friday morning of his kingship he went into the kitchen and called for his royal chef.

2. Having the air or demeanour of a monarch.
   • William Shakespeare (c.1564–1616)

     How doth that royal merchant, good Antonio?

3. (nautical) In large sailing ships, of a mast right above the topgallant mast and its sails.

   royal mast;  royal sail

4. (boxing, military) Free-for-all, especially involving multiple combatants.
5. (informal) Used as an intensifier.

   a royal pain in the neck

Synonyms

• (of a monarch): kingly (of a king), monarchical, princely (of a prince), queenly (of a queen), regal
• (having a monarch's air): majestic, stately, regal
• (informal intensifier): major

Derived terms

Terms derived from royal (adjective)

• give the royal treatment
• rhyme royal
• Royal
• royal albatross
• royal assent
• royal crown
• royal family
• royal fern

• royal flush
• royalist
• royal jelly
• royal kite
• royally
• royal moth
• royal spoonbill
• royal standard

• royal tennis
• royalty
• royal walnut
• royal walnut moth
• royal warrant
• royal we
• royal wedding

Related terms

• real estate

Translations

of or relating to a monarch or their family

• Albanian: mbretëror (sq)
• Arabic: مَلَكِيّ‎ (malakiyy)
• Armenian: արքայական (hy) (arkʿayakan)
• Aromanian: vãsilchescu
• Basque: erregeren, errege-
• Belarusian: карале́ўскі m (karaljéŭski)
• Bulgarian: кра́лски (králski)
• Catalan: reial (ca)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 王室的 (zh) (wángshì de)

• Czech: královský (cs)
• Danish: royal (da), kongelig
• Dutch: koninklijk (nl)
• Esperanto: reĝa
• Estonian: kuninglik
• Faroese: kongligur, kongaligur, konguligur
• Finnish: kuninkaallinen (fi)
• French: royal (fr), royale (fr) f
• Georgian: მეფის (mepis), მეფური (mepuri)
• German: königlich (de)
• Greek: βασιλικός (el) (vasilikós)
• Hebrew: מלכותי‎
• Hungarian: királyi (hu)
• Icelandic: konunglegur (is)
• Ido: rejala (io)
• Indonesian: diraja (id)
• Irish: ríoga
• Italian: reale (it), regale
• Japanese: 王の (ja) (ō no), 王室の (ja) (ōshitsu no)
• Korean: 왕실의 (wangsir-eui)

• Latin: regius (la), regalis
• Latvian: karalisks, ķēnišķīgs
• Leonese: reyal
• Lithuanian: karališkas (lt)
• Macedonian: кралски m (králski)
• Malay: diraja (ms)
• Norman: rouoya
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: kongelig

  Nynorsk: kongeleg

• Novial: regal
• Old French: roial
• Old Provençal: reial
• Persian: شایگان‎ (fa) (šâygân)
• Polish: królewski (pl)
• Portuguese: real (pt)
• Romanian: regal (ro) m, regală (ro) f
• Russian: короле́вский (ru) (korolévskij), ца́рский (ru) (cárskij) (related to tsars, tsarist)
• Scottish Gaelic: rìoghail
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: краљевски

  Roman: kraljevski (sh)

• Slovak: kráľovský (sk)
• Slovene: kraljev, knežji
• Spanish: real (es)
• Swedish: kunglig (sv)
• Thai: ราช (râat)
• Turkish: kraliyet (tr)
• Ukrainian: королі́вський (korolívsʹkyj)
• Volapük: (♂♀) regik (vo), (♂) hiregik, (♀) jiregik
• Welsh: brenhinol (cy)

majestic — see majestic

Noun

royal (plural royals)

1. A royal person; a member of a royal family.
2. (paper, printing) A standard size of printing paper, measuring 25 by 20 inches.
3. (dated) The Australian decimal currency intended to replace the pound in 1966; was changed to "dollar" before it was actually circulated.
4. The fourth tine of an antler's beam.
5. A stag with twelve points (six on each antler).
6. (nautical) In large sailing ships, square sail over the topgallant sail.
7. An old English gold coin, the rial.
8. (military) A small mortar.
9. (card games) In auction bridge, a royal spade.

Translations

royal person

• Finnish: kuninkaallinen (fi)

standard size of printing paper

• Finnish: royal (fi)

intended Australian decimal currency

• Finnish: royal (fi)

fourth tine of an antler's beam

• Finnish: royal (fi)

nautical: a sail

• Finnish: röijeli, röijelipurje
• French: cacatois (fr)
• German: Royalsegel
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: røyl m

• Portuguese: real (pt)
• Russian: бом-бра́мсель m (bom-brámselʹ)
• Spanish: real (es)
• Swedish: röjel (sv), bovenbramsegel, överbramsegel

old English gold coin — see rial

military: small mortar

See also

Other semantically related terms

• emperor
• imperial
• king
• monarch

• prince
• princess
• queen

Anagrams

• aroyl, orlay

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French

Etymology

From Middle French roial, from Old French roial, from earlier reial, real, from very early Old French (c. 880) regiel, from Latin rēgālis, from rēg-, the stem of rēx (“king”). Equivalent to roi +‎ -al.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ʁwa.jal/

• Audio (France, Paris)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -al
• Homophones: royale, royales

Adjective

royal (feminine singular royale, masculine plural royaux, feminine plural royales)

1. royal (of or relating to a monarch or their family)

Related terms

• roi
• royaume

Further reading

• “royal” in le Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).

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Middle French

Etymology

Variant spelling of roial.

Adjective

royal m (feminine singular royale, masculine plural royaulx, feminine plural royales)

1. royal (of or relating to a monarch or their family)