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   Roy·al·ty

   /ˈroi(ə)ltē/

   

   noun

   • 1. people of royal blood or status: "diplomats, heads of state, and royalty shared tables at the banquet"
   • ▪ a member of a royal family: "she swept by as if she were royalty"
   • ▪ the status or power of a king or queen: "the brilliance of her clothes, her jewels, all revealed her royalty"
   • ▪ the most successful, famous, or highly regarded members of a particular group: "it's not often you meet real Hollywood royalty, let alone chat to Angelina Jolie and Dustin Hoffman in one day"
   • 2. a sum of money paid to a patentee for the use of a patent or to an author or composer for each copy of a book sold or for each public performance of a work: "the royalties paid to writers for recorded music"
   • 3. a royal right (now especially over minerals) granted by the sovereign to an individual or corporation.
   • ▪ a payment made by a producer of minerals, oil, or natural gas to the owner of the site or of the mineral rights over it.

   Word Origin late Middle English: from Old French roialte, from roial (see royal). The sense ‘royal right (especially over minerals’) (late 15th century) developed into the sense ‘payment made by a mineral producer to the site owner’ (mid 19th century), which was then transferred to payments for the use of patents and published materials.

   Scrabble Points: 13

   • R

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   • O

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   • Y

     4

   • A

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   • L

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   • T

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   • Y

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