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fealty

 - 3 dictionary results

fe⋅al⋅ty

  [fee-uhl-tee]
Use fealty in a Sentence
–noun, plural -ties.
1. History/Historical.
a. fidelity to a lord.
b. the obligation or the engagement to be faithful to a lord, usually sworn to by a vassal.
2. fidelity; faithfulness.
Origin:
1275–1325; ME feute, feaute, fealtye < AF, OF feauté, fealté < L fidēlitāt- (s. of fidēlitās) fidelity; internal -au-, -al- from feal, reshaping (by substitution of -al- -al 1 ) of fe(d)eil < L fidēlis

Synonyms:
2. loyalty, devotion.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To fealty
fe·al·ty   (fē'əl-tē)   
n.   pl. fe·al·ties

    1. The fidelity owed by a vassal to his feudal lord.

    2. The oath of such fidelity.

  2. Faithfulness; allegiance. See Synonyms at fidelity.


[Middle English fealtye, from Old French fealte, from Latin fidēlitās, faithfulness, from fidēlis, faithful, from fidēs, faith; see bheidh- in Indo-European roots.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

fealty 
c.1300, from O.Fr. feauté, from L. fidelitatem (nom. fidelitas) "fidelity," from fidelis "loyal, faithful" (see fidelity).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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