Royal

How to spell royal

5 letters · 2 syllables

How to pronounce royal

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does royal mean?

1. adjectiveRelating to, belonging to, or characteristic of a king or queen.
2. nounA member of a royal family.

Royal in a sentence

• adjective

  The royal wedding was broadcast to millions of viewers.

• noun

  The charity event was attended by a minor royal and several politicians.

• adjective

  The museum holds a collection of royal portraits dating back centuries.

• noun

  Every royal in the procession waved to the gathered crowd.

Where does royal come from?

Language of origin: French

This word arrived in English around 1300 from the Old French roial, which described anything 'kingly' or 'belonging to the king'. That French form grew out of the Latin regalis, meaning 'regal' or 'pertaining to a monarch', which was itself built on the noun rex, the Latin word for 'king'. The Latin r-e-g spelling softened into the French r-o-y over centuries of pronunciation drift, which is why the English word now carries an 'oy' sound that its Latin ancestor did not. The very same rex root still sits inside the more bookish English word 'regal' and in 'reign', so a learner can picture the kingly r-e-g family hiding behind the friendlier 'roy' spelling. Because English took the word straight from spoken French rather than from written Latin, the spelling settled on the simple, phonetic 'royal' that we use today.

How the word is built

• roy- (from Old French roial, ultimately Latin rex: king)
• -al (adjective suffix)