royalty
noun
roy·al·ty
ˈrȯi(-ə)l-tē 
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
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
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 on the Web
Devon Allman and Duane Betts were born from music royalty.
—Glenn Peoples, Billboard, 21 July 2025
Acquainted with the world's most powerful people: British royalty, U.S. presidents.
—July 18, NPR, 18 July 2025
Epstein cultivated relationships with celebrities, politicians, and royalty, including Donald Trump, Bill Clinton, and Prince Andrew.
—Amanda Castro
hannah Parry, MSNBC Newsweek, 17 July 2025
As part of the deal, Asos also retains certain design and distribution rights for the Topshop and Topman brands in return for a royalty fee to enable it to continue marketing and selling the brands online.
—Tianwei Zhang, Footwear News, 16 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for royalty
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Glenn Peoples, Billboard, 21 July 2025
Acquainted with the world's most powerful people: British royalty, U.S. presidents.
—July 18, NPR, 18 July 2025
Epstein cultivated relationships with celebrities, politicians, and royalty, including Donald Trump, Bill Clinton, and Prince Andrew.
—Amanda Castro
hannah Parry, MSNBC Newsweek, 17 July 2025
As part of the deal, Asos also retains certain design and distribution rights for the Topshop and Topman brands in return for a royalty fee to enable it to continue marketing and selling the brands online.
—Tianwei Zhang, Footwear News, 16 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for royalty
Cite this Entry
“Royalty.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/royalty. Accessed 30 Jul. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
royalty
noun
roy·al·ty
ˈrȯi(-ə)l-tē
plural royalties
1
: royal status or power
2
: royal character or conduct
3
: members of a royal family
4
a
: a share of a product or profit (as of a mine) claimed by the owner for allowing another to use the property
b
: a payment made to the owner of a patent or copyright for the use of it
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