Word of the Day(Merriam Webster Dictionary)
January 9 2016
fealty • \FEE-ul-tee\ • noun
1 a : the fidelity of a vassal orfeudal tenant to his lord
b : the obligation of such fidelity
2 : intense fidelity
Examples:
"The fealty of country music fansto their favorite stars is as strongas old-time religion." — NicholasDawidoff, The New Republic, 18July 1994
"Mr. Keith was more of a rabble-rouser, from the contentiousnessof his politics to the muscularityof his sound, but his fealty totradition was never in doubt." — Jon Caramanica, The New YorkTimes, 8 Oct. 2015
Did you know?
In The Use of Law, publishedposthumously in 1629, FrancisBacon wrote, "Fealty is to take anoath upon a book, that he will be a faithful Tenant to the King."That's a pretty accurate summaryof the early meaning of fealty.Early forms of the term were usedin Middle English around 1300,when they specifically designatedthe loyalty of a vassal to a lord.Eventually, the meaning of theword broadened. Fealty can bepaid to a country, a principle, or aleader of any kind—though thesynonyms fidelity and loyalty aremore commonly used. Fealtycomes from the Anglo-Frenchword feelté, or fealté, whichcomes from the Latin fidelitas,meaning "fidelity." These wordsare ultimately derived from fides, the Latin word for "faith."
