allegiance : Dictionary / Wörterbuch (BEOLINGUS, TU Chemnitz)

English Dictionary: allegiance	by the DICT Development Group
2 results for allegiance
From WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006) [wn]:
allegiance n the act of binding yourself (intellectually or emotionally) to a course of action; "his long commitment to public service"; "they felt no loyalty to a losing team" Synonym(s): commitment, allegiance, loyalty, dedication the loyalty that citizens owe to their country (or subjects to their sovereign) Synonym(s): allegiance, fealty
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]:
Allegiance \Alle"giance\, n. [OE. alegeaunce; pref. a- + OF. lige, liege. The meaning was influenced by L. ligare to bind, and even by lex, legis, law. See {Liege}, {Ligeance}.] 1. The tie or obligation, implied or expressed, which a subject owes to his sovereign or government; the duty of fidelity to one's king, government, or state. 2. Devotion; loyalty; as, allegiance* to science. Syn: Loyalty; fealty. Usage: {Allegiance}, {Loyalty}. These words agree in expressing the general idea of fidelity and attachment to the [bd]powers that be.[b8] Allegiance is an obligation to a ruling power. Loyalty is a feeling or sentiment towards such power. Allegiance may exist under any form of government, and, in a republic, we generally speak of allegiance to the government, to the state, etc. In well conducted monarchies, loyalty is a warm-hearted feeling of fidelity and obedience to the sovereign. It is personal in its nature; and hence we speak of the loyalty of a wife to her husband, not of her allegiance. In cases where we personify, loyalty is more commonly the word used; as, loyalty to the constitution; loyalty to the cause of virtue; loyalty to truth and religion, etc. Hear me, recreant, on thine allegiance hear me! --Shak. So spake the Seraph Abdiel, faithful found, . . . Unshaken, unseduced, unterrified, His loyalty he kept, his love, his zeal. --Milton.