royalist
Americannoun
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a supporter or adherent of a king or royal government, especially in times of rebellion or civil war.
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(initial capital letter) a Cavalier adherent of Charles I of England.
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a loyalist in the American Revolution; Tory.
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(initial capital letter) an adherent of the house of Bourbon in France.
adjective
noun
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a supporter of a monarch or monarchy, esp a supporter of the Stuarts during the English Civil War
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informal an extreme reactionary or conservative
an economic royalist
adjective
Other Word Forms
- antiroyalism noun
- antiroyalist noun
- nonroyalist noun
- royalism noun
- royalistic adjective
- ultraroyalist noun
Etymology
Origin of royalist
Vocabulary lists containing royalist
The French Revolution
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Vocabulary from Readings 2, Unit 2
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Recovering from his wounds, a still-weakened Miller led another attack against the heavily fortified royalist stronghold of Valdivia, Chile—the “Gibraltar of South America.”
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 17, 2026
Elliott said: "It's absolutely brilliant. It's such an honour, a lad from a council estate in Rotherham, and after all these years, getting an MBE is just such an honour. I'm very much a royalist."
From BBC • Dec. 29, 2025
The royalist faction in England were essentially moderates, who believed in religious liberty, wanted global trade and founded the Royal Society to advance science.
From Salon • Mar. 15, 2025
Caballero was by all accounts smart, shrewd and a seasoned knife fighter in the corridors of power at the Spanish court, a minor noble and avowed royalist who maneuvered his way into increasingly powerful positions.
From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 28, 2023
And although it is hazardous to assume any of this had formative effects on his character, it is equally an exaggeration to say that Eratosthenes grew up breathing an atmosphere of pure royalist docility.
From "Circumference" by Nicholas Nicastro
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
