mercenary

adjective

Definition of mercenarynext
as in greedy
having or marked by an eager and often selfish desire especially for material possessions they were a mercenary couple, who defined themselves not by what they were but by what they owned

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of mercenary When River’s mercenary father, Frank Harkness (Hugo Weaving), shows up at David Cartwright’s funeral, the puzzle gets even more complex. — Lisa De Los Reyes, HollywoodReporter, 16 Sep. 2026 Nobody comes off well; if anything, the snooty German Jews almost seem more vicious than the right-wing plotters, who are presented as mercenary and power-hungry rather than ideological. — Literary Hub, 9 Sep. 2026 One event occurred in 2015 when the mercenary hacker collective Hacking Team used one against a target it had been contracted to infect. — Dan Goodin, ArsTechnica, 2 Sep. 2026 Lee joins after inking a deal to star in Tygo, a Korean-language entry in the franchise centered on his former child soldier turned mercenary, which is in post-production. — Matt Grobar, Deadline, 17 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for mercenary
Recent Examples of Synonyms for mercenary
  1. greedy
  2. avaricious
  3. eager
  4. acquisitive
Adjective
  • The toys were not purloined, kidnapped, auctioned by Sotheby's or flipped by greedy collectors on eBay.
    — STEVE HENDRIX THE WASHINGTON POST, Arkansas Online, 21 Oct. 2026
  • John Wayne and Gary Cooper, like Ken-san, often played anachronistic loners from a disappearing Arcadia that was being destroyed by hard-nosed modernizers—greedy bankers, railway owners, big-city politicians.
    — Ian Buruma, New Yorker, 12 Oct. 2026
Definition of greedy
Adjective
  • Played by a Colman Domingo who is done up to look the most wax figurine of them all in a shellacking of makeup, prosthetics, and colored contacts, Joe is always either giving an avaricious open-mouthed leer or a cold-eyed glare.
    — Alison Willmore, Vulture, 23 Apr. 2026
  • There’s a quasi-heist theme to The Christophers, which revolves around an acclaimed artist (McKellen), who has long since stopped making new work, and his avaricious children (Gunning and Corden) who try to enlist Coel to complete some of their dad’s unfinished paintings.
    — Matthew Carey, Deadline, 30 Mar. 2026
Definition of avaricious
Adjective
  • A couple of days before the Ann Demeulemeester show at Paris Fashion Week, eager models are standing in the foyer of the brand’s studio in the Marais, waiting patiently with their picture in hand.
    — Lucy Maguire, Vogue, 21 Oct. 2026
  • But why are these other streamers so eager to get in the creator business?
    — Alex Weprin, HollywoodReporter, 21 Oct. 2026
Definition of eager
Adjective
  • Frasers’ failed takeover bid this past summer only whetted its acquisitive owner Mike Ashley‘s appetite for more.
    — Samantha Conti, Footwear News, 24 Oct. 2026
  • But for an acquisitive current occupant of the White House, the oldest continuously active musical organization hasn’t seemed enough.
    — Classical Music Critic, Los Angeles Times, 20 Aug. 2026
Definition of acquisitive

Browse Nearby Words

mercenariness
mercenary
merchandise
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Mercenary.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mercenary. Accessed 28 Oct. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on mercenary

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about mercenary

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