ˈmajə̇stē, -ti noun
( -es )
Etymology: Middle English maieste, magestee, from Old French majesté, from Late Latin majestat-, majestas, from Latin, sovereign power, dignity, authority, from a base akin to Latin major greater (compar. of magnus great) + -tat-, -tas -ty — more at much
1.
a. capitalized : the sovereign greatness, authority, or dominion of God
seated at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in heaven — Heb 8:1 (Revised Standard Version)
b. : sovereign power, authority, or dignity : kingly greatness
the kingdom of truth is a threat to every historical majesty — Reinhold Niebuhr
a tyrannous sun, whose majesty was almost insupportable, lorded it over the world — James Stephens
c. : the person of a sovereign
and watching, one knew that majesty had passed
2.
[Middle English mageste, from Middle French or Medieval Latin; Middle French majesté, from Medieval Latin majestat-, majestas, from Latin]
— used with your in addressing reigning sovereigns and their consorts and with his, her, or their as a periphrastic designation of these
he had pleaded with her majesty to let him study the art of war in the tented field — A.B.Feldman
Your Majesty
Their Majesties of England — Frank Yerby
3.
[Middle French maiesté, from Medieval Latin majestat-, majestas ]
: a representation in graphic or plastic art of God the Father, of Christ, of the Virgin, or of the three persons of the Trinity enthroned in glory
4.
a. : royal dignity, bearing, or aspect : stateliness
there is a majesty that surrounds a president in Soviet eyes — M.W.Straight
b. : august or commanding power, effect, or appearance : grandeur
the luminous band of the Milky Way that stretches in quiet majesty all around the sky — B.J.Bok
stood up straight, in all the majesty of his giant stature — Liam O'Flaherty
this link between mortals and forces shaping their lives was the mighty concern which gave a kind of majesty to … his plays — John Mason Brown
5. : greatness or splendor of quality or character
at his best in sudden majesty of phrase — Virginia Woolf
nightingales disturbed the majesty of great nights — F.M.Ford