Loyal and Legal Are the Same Word
Loyalty is faithfulness to a person, group or cause. The word came into English through French from the Latin for lawful.
Loyalty is steady faithfulness — to a person, a country, a team, a brand. The word's ancestor is Latin *legalis*, lawful, which also gives us *legal*. One arrived through French and became about the heart; the other came straight from Latin and stayed about the courts.
- Faithfulness to someone or something. *Loyalty to old friends.*
- Continued custom. *Brand loyalty.*
- Loyalty card — a scheme rewarding repeat customers. *Scan your loyalty card.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun | loyalty | Fierce loyalty. |
| Plural | loyalties | Divided loyalties. |
| Adjective | loyal | A loyal customer. |
| Adverb | loyally | He served loyally. |
| Opposite | disloyalty | Accused of disloyalty. |
How it is used in a sentence
- Her loyalty to the club never wavered.Loyalty to names the object.
- He faced divided loyalties.Plural when several claims compete.
- The scheme rewards loyalty with points.Commercial use.
Related qualities
- Loyalty — sticking with someone or something
- Fidelity — faithfulness, especially in relationships
- Allegiance — formal loyalty owed to a state or leader
- Devotion — loyalty with strong feeling
- Solidarity — loyalty between people with shared interests
From Old French *loialte*, from *loial*, from Latin *legalis*, lawful, from *lex*, law. English borrowed the Latin form separately as *legal*, which is why the pair look so different.
Loyalty or allegiance?
Allegiance is formal and often sworn, to a state or a sovereign. Loyalty is personal and needs no ceremony.
Can loyalty be a fault?
It can. Loyalty to a person over a principle is what makes phrases like blind loyalty and misplaced loyalty possible.