royalty

noun roy·al·ty \ ˈrȯi(-ə)l-tē \

|Updated on: 16 Jun 2018

Examples: royalty in a Sentence

Definition of royalty

plural royalties

1 a : royal status or power : sovereignty

b : a right or perquisite of a sovereign (such as a percentage paid to the crown of gold or silver taken from mines)

2 : regal character or bearing : nobility

3 a : persons of royal lineage

b : a person of royal rank

how to address royalties
—George Santayana

c : an elite class

4 : a right of jurisdiction granted to an individual or corporation by a sovereign

5 a : a share of the product or profit reserved by the grantor especially of an oil or mining lease

b : a payment to an author or composer for each copy of a work sold or to an inventor for each item sold under a patent

See royalty defined for English-language learners

See royalty defined for kids

Examples of royalty in a Sentence

It was an honor and a privilege to dine with royalty.
On our wedding day, we were treated like royalty.

Recent Examples of royalty from the Web

The only hitch, the ghost is being difficult about royalties.

— joy lanzendorfer, Longreads, "Ghost Writer: The Story of Patience Worth, the Posthumous Author," 14 June 2018
Gathered there were hundreds of current Clover Street School students ready to high-five, cheer and welcome back about two dozen Windsor High School seniors clad in their white or maroon graduation caps and gowns like returning royalty.

— steven goode, Courant Community, "Windsor High School Seniors Head Back To Their Elementary Schools To Greet Younger Students," 13 June 2018
Kenya Kinski Jones comes from Hollywood royalty; her dad is record producer Quincy Jones, mom is German model/actress Nastassja Kinski and her half-sister is Rashida Jones.

— colleen kratofil, PEOPLE.com, "Get to Know Kenya Kinski Jones - and See Her Model in Nasty Gal's New Campaign," 13 June 2018
As Gardens, Redulla has served as Miss Phoenix Gay Pride, Imperial Court royalty and was a grand marshal in Phoenix Pride's parade.

— garrett mitchell, azcentral, "Miss Gay Arizona pageant lauds the best drag performers," 11 June 2018
But last year, several former members sued the lead singer over royalties.

— trevor fraser, OrlandoSentinel.com, "Ghost set to haunt the Dr. Phillips Center," 11 June 2018
The British group, which formed in London in 1979, released six albums during their heyday in the '80s before splitting up in 1990 due to disagreements over royalties.

— emily zemler, Billboard, "Spandau Ballet Debuts New Singer In London: 'This Is a Rebirth of the Band'," 7 June 2018
Chevron is one of the few multinational oil companies still working in Venezuela, where the socialist government has raised royalties and seized assets to increase its control of the industry.

— Houston Chronicle, "Venezuela frees 2 Chevron employees arrested in April," 7 June 2018
Windsor Court has seen its fair share of celebrities throughout the years, from rock stars and Academy Award-winning actresses to British royalty and U.S. presidents.

— lindsay silberman, Town & Country, "The Best Room At...Windsor Court," 7 June 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'royalty.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of royalty

Middle English roialte, from Anglo-French realté, roialté, from real

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 15th century

in the meaning defined at sense 1a

See Words from the same year

royalty Synonyms

Synonyms

aristocracy, best, choice, cream, crème de la crème, elect, elite, fat, flower, pick, pride, prime, upper crust;

Near Antonyms

commoners, herd, hoi polloi, masses, millions, mob, multitude, rank and file, unwashed;

Phrases

cream of the crop, Hall of Fame;

ROYALTY Defined for English Language Learners

royalty

noun

Definition of royalty for English Language Learners

: members of a royal family
: an amount of money that is paid to the original creator of a product, book, or piece of music based on how many copies have been sold
: an amount of money that is paid by a mining or oil company to the owner of the land the company is using