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

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

Synonyms

• augustness
• kingliness
• majesty
• stateliness

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

In fiscal 2024, the NCAA’s royalties and promotional rights brought in $17.3 million, while ticket sales and other revenue direct from its championships made another $263.2 million. —Eben Novy-Williams, Sportico.com, 20 Mar. 2025

That Nike deal only guaranteed the club a base of £30m per year, but uplifts including 20 per cent net royalties on club merchandise sales pushed their earnings from the deal over the £60m mark. —Chris Weatherspoon, The Athletic, 20 Mar. 2025

Using royalties generated by his hit consumer success, the Super Soaker, he’s poured his attention and creativity into solving one of the toughest challenges in energy technology. —Stephen Key, Forbes, 18 Mar. 2025

Iggy Azalea has taken to social media to accuse Universal Music Group (UMG) of failing to pay her royalties from international sales, alleging that the company owes her millions in back payments. —Preezy Brown, VIBE.com, 17 Mar. 2025

Word History

Etymology

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

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Rhymes for royalty

• loyalty
• disloyalty
• viceroyalty

Kids 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

Legal Definition

royalty

noun

roy·​al·​ty

plural royalties

1

: a right delegated (as to an individual or corporation) by a sovereign

2

a

: a share of the profit or product reserved by the grantor especially of an oil or mineral lease compare overriding royalty

b

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