adj. & n.
adj. 1 of or suited to or worthy of a king or queen. 2 in the service or under the patronage of a king or queen. 3 belonging to the king or queen (the royal hands; the royal anger). 4 of the family of a king or queen. 5 kingly, majestic, stately, splendid. 6 on a great scale, of exceptional size or quality, first-rate (gave us royal entertainment; in royal spirits; had a royal time).
n. 1 colloq. a member of the royal family. 2 a royal sail or mast. 3 a royal stag. 4 a size of paper, about 620 x 500 mm (25 x 20 in.). 5 (the Royals) the Royal Marines. Royal Air Force the British air force. royal assent see ASSENT. royal blue Brit. a deep vivid blue. Royal British Legion a national association of ex-members of the armed forces, founded in 1921. royal burgh hist. (in Scotland) a burgh holding a charter from the Crown. Royal Commission see COMMISSION. royal duke see DUKE. Royal Engineers the engineering branch of the British army. royal family the family to which a sovereign belongs. royal fern a fern, Osmunda regalis, with huge spreading fronds. royal flush see FLUSH(3). royal icing a hard white icing made from icing sugar and egg-whites. Royal Institution a British society founded in 1799 for the diffusion of scientific knowledge. royal jelly a substance secreted by honey-bee workers and fed by them to future queen bees. Royal Marine a British marine (see MARINE n. 2). royal mast a mast above a topgallant mast. Royal Navy the British navy. royal oak a sprig of oak worn on 29 May to commemorate the restoration of Charles II (1660), who hid in an oak after the battle of Worcester (1651). royal plural the first person plural 'we' used by a single person. royal road to way of attaining without trouble. royal sail a sail above a topgallant sail. Royal Society (in full Royal Society of London) a society founded in 1662 to promote scientific discussion. royal stag a stag with a head of 12 or more points. royal standard a banner bearing royal heraldic arms. royal tennis real tennis. Royal Victorian Chain (in the UK) an order founded by Edward VII in 1902 and conferred by the sovereign on special occasions. Royal Victorian Order (in the UK) an order founded by Queen Victoria in 1896 and conferred usu. for great service rendered to the sovereign. royal warrant a warrant authorizing a tradesperson to supply goods to a specified royal person. royally adv.
[ ME f. OF roial f. L regalis REGAL ]