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regal - 7 dictionary results

re⋅gal

1  [ree-guhl]
Use regal in a Sentence
–adjective
1. of or pertaining to a king; royal: the regal power.
2. befitting or resembling a king.
3. stately; splendid.
Origin:
1300–50; ME < L rēgālis royal

Related forms:
re⋅gal⋅ly, adverb
re⋅gal⋅ness, noun

Synonyms:
2. See kingly.

Antonyms:
3. base.

re⋅gal

2  [ree-guhl]
–noun
a portable reed organ of the 16th and 17th centuries.
Origin:
1540–50; < MF regale < ?
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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re·gal   (rē'gəl)   
adj.  
  1. Of or relating to a monarch; royal.
  2. Belonging to or befitting a monarch: regal attire.
  3. Magnificent; splendid.

[Middle English, from Old French, from Latin rēgālis, from rēx, rēg-, king; see reg- in Indo-European roots.]
re·gal'i·ty (rĭ-gāl'ĭ-tē) n., re'gal·ly adv.
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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Regal

Re"gal\ (r?"gal), a. [L. regalis, fr. rex, regis, a king. See Royal, and cf. Rajah, Realm, Regalia.] Of or pertaining to a king; kingly; royal; as, regal authority, pomp, or sway. "The regal title." --Shak.

He made a scorn of his regal oath. --Milton.

Syn: Kingly; royal. See Kingly.

Regal

Re"gal\, n. [F. r['e]gale, It. regale. CF. Rigoll.] (Mus.) A small portable organ, played with one hand, the bellows being worked with the other, -- used in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Language Translation for : regal
Spanish: regio, real,
German: königlich,
Japanese: 王者らしい
More Translations »

regal 
c.1330, from L. regalis "royal, kingly, belonging to a king," from rex (gen. regis) "king," from PIE base *reg- "move in a straight line," hence, "direct, rule, guide" (cf. Skt. raj- "a king, a leader;" Avestan razeyeiti "directs;" Pers. rahst "right, correct;" L. regere "to rule," rex "a king, a leader," rectus "right, correct;" O.Ir. ri, Gaelic righ "a king;" Gaul. -rix "a king," in personal names, e.g. Vircingetorix; Goth. reiks "a leader;" O.E. rice "kingdom," -ric "king," rice "rich, powerful," riht "correct;" Goth. raihts, O.H.G. recht, O.Swed. reht, O.N. rettr "correct").
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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regal

a small, easily portable pipe organ usually having only a single set, or rank, of reed pipes. The beating reeds are surmounted by small resonators, producing a nasal, buzzing tone. Wind under pressure to sound the pipes is supplied by one or two bellows attached to the instrument and operated by the player or an assistant. The so-called bible regal, of the 16th century and later, can be folded up into the shape of a large book when not in use, hence its name. Regals, widely played in Europe during the Renaissance and Baroque eras, gained popularity as both solo and ensemble instruments. A regal is the instrument specified by Claudio Monteverdi to accompany brass instruments in an infernal scene in his music drama Orfeo (1607), and King Henry VIII of England evidently owned 17 regals of various sizes and pitches

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Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
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