mercenary

1 of 2

noun

mer·​ce·​nary ˈmər-sə-ˌner-ē 

-ne-rē

plural mercenaries

: one that serves merely for wages

especially : a soldier hired into foreign service

mercenaries who guaranteed the success of the rebellion

—B. F. Reilly

mercenary

2 of 2

adjective

1

: serving merely for pay or sordid advantage : venal

also : greedy

2

: hired for service in the army of a foreign country

mercenarily

ˌmər-sə-ˈner-ə-lē 

-ˈne-rə-

adverb

mercenariness

ˈmər-sə-ˌner-ē-nəs 

-ˌne-rē-

noun

Synonyms

Adjective

• acquisitive
• avaricious
• avid
• coveting
• covetous
• grabby
• grasping
• greedy
• moneygrubbing
• rapacious

Examples of mercenary in a Sentence

Noun

an army of foreign mercenaries

Adjective

His motives in choosing a career were purely mercenary.

they were a mercenary couple, who defined themselves not by what they were but by what they owned

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Kenyan Police Fight Gangs Gang violence began to spiral out of control after the assassination of Haitian President in 2021 by a group of foreign mercenaries. —Rachel Dobkin, Newsweek, 6 Dec. 2024

Three episodes after Chase, Zoe McDonald, Harper, and Cheryl Harper supposedly bore audio witness to Emily’s assassination; we’re shown the visual representation of what truly happened: Yes, Pavlovich’s armed mercenaries breached the room where Emily was hiding with her Afghan family. —Sarene Leeds, Vulture, 24 Oct. 2024

Adjective

Moscow provided air, weapon and artillery support to the regime, as well as mercenary fighters. Iran, long an ally and sponsor of Assad and Syria as a key node in its Axis of Resistance, stepped up its military presence to protect its client and secure weapons flows and influence. —Ian Pannell, ABC News, 3 Dec. 2024

Her motive in accepting the offer is not solely mercenary. —Peter Rainer, The Christian Science Monitor, 7 Nov. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Noun and Adjective

Middle English, from Latin mercenarius, irregular from merced-, merces wages — more at mercy

First Known Use

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Adjective

1532, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

mercenary

1 of 2 noun

mer·​ce·​nary ˈmərs-ᵊn-ˌer-ē 

plural mercenaries

: one that serves only for wages

especially : a soldier hired by a foreign country to fight in its army

mercenary

2 of 2 adjective

1

: serving only for the pay or reward

mercenary armies

mercenary soldier

2

: greedy for money

mercenary business owners