ex·pe·di·ent
ik-ˈspē-dē-ənt 
1
: suitable for achieving a particular end in a given circumstance
2
: characterized by concern with what is opportune
especially
: governed by self-interest
expediently
adverb
: something done or used to achieve a particular end usually quickly or temporarily : an expedient action or solution
Examples of expedient in a Sentence
Adjective
Marley found it expedient to maintain social relationships with gunmen and politicans from both political parties.
—
Robert Palmer, Rolling Stone, 24 Feb. 1994
The marble floor … gave the hall the aspect of a cathedral, and the walls were decorated with aphorisms such as Cicero's THE WELFARE OF THE PEOPLE IS THE HIGHEST LAW, a phrase he found curiously—or at least potentially—expedient in what was certainly designed as a temple to the idea of law.
—Tom Clancy, Patriot Games, 1987
Under political pressure and at the urging of Jefferson, Madison finally (but grudgingly) admitted that a bill of rights might help, over time, to instill in the people a greater respect for "the fundamental maxims of free government." But even as he was shepherding the first amendments through Congress, in 1789, he privately described them (amazingly enough) as a "nauseous project," required only for expedient reasons of politics.
—Jack N. Rakove, Atlantic, December 1986
They found it expedient to negotiate with the terrorists.
Do the right thing, not the expedient thing.
Noun
In 1882, racing to meet the deadline on Life on the Mississippi, he [Mark Twain] boasted to W. D. Howells that he had managed to churn out 9,500 words in a day, having resorted to the old hack's expedient of copying out large chunks from other people's books …
—Jonathan Raban, Times Literary Supplement, 21–27 Sept. 1990
The Viet Cong taught the peasants to dig cave shelters under the sleeping platforms rural Vietnamese cover with mats of woven straw and use as beds. This expedient gave the peasants a handy shelter right inside the house, unless that house happened to be one of those set afire by the napalm or the white phosphorus, called Willy Peter in U.S. military idiom.
—Neil Sheehan, A Bright Shining Lie, 1988
For government is an expedient, by which men would fain succeed in letting one another alone; and, as has been said, when it is most expedient, the governed are most let alone by it.
—Henry David Thoreau, "Civil Disobedience," 1849
For it is plain that every word we speak is in some degree a diminution of our lungs by corrosion, and consequently contributes to the shortening of our lives. An expedient was therefore offered, that since words are only names for things, it would be more convenient for all men to carry about them such things as were necessary to express the particular business they are to discourse on.
—Jonathan Swift, Gulliver's Travels, 1726
The government chose short-term expedients instead of a real economic policy.
We can solve this problem by the simple expedient of taking out another loan.
Robert Palmer, Rolling Stone, 24 Feb. 1994
The marble floor … gave the hall the aspect of a cathedral, and the walls were decorated with aphorisms such as Cicero's THE WELFARE OF THE PEOPLE IS THE HIGHEST LAW, a phrase he found curiously—or at least potentially—expedient in what was certainly designed as a temple to the idea of law.
—Tom Clancy, Patriot Games, 1987
Under political pressure and at the urging of Jefferson, Madison finally (but grudgingly) admitted that a bill of rights might help, over time, to instill in the people a greater respect for "the fundamental maxims of free government." But even as he was shepherding the first amendments through Congress, in 1789, he privately described them (amazingly enough) as a "nauseous project," required only for expedient reasons of politics.
—Jack N. Rakove, Atlantic, December 1986
They found it expedient to negotiate with the terrorists.
Do the right thing, not the expedient thing.
Noun
In 1882, racing to meet the deadline on Life on the Mississippi, he [Mark Twain] boasted to W. D. Howells that he had managed to churn out 9,500 words in a day, having resorted to the old hack's expedient of copying out large chunks from other people's books …
—Jonathan Raban, Times Literary Supplement, 21–27 Sept. 1990
The Viet Cong taught the peasants to dig cave shelters under the sleeping platforms rural Vietnamese cover with mats of woven straw and use as beds. This expedient gave the peasants a handy shelter right inside the house, unless that house happened to be one of those set afire by the napalm or the white phosphorus, called Willy Peter in U.S. military idiom.
—Neil Sheehan, A Bright Shining Lie, 1988
For government is an expedient, by which men would fain succeed in letting one another alone; and, as has been said, when it is most expedient, the governed are most let alone by it.
—Henry David Thoreau, "Civil Disobedience," 1849
For it is plain that every word we speak is in some degree a diminution of our lungs by corrosion, and consequently contributes to the shortening of our lives. An expedient was therefore offered, that since words are only names for things, it would be more convenient for all men to carry about them such things as were necessary to express the particular business they are to discourse on.
—Jonathan Swift, Gulliver's Travels, 1726
The government chose short-term expedients instead of a real economic policy.
We can solve this problem by the simple expedient of taking out another loan.
Recent Examples on the Web
Gal Beckerman, The Atlantic, 20 Mar. 2025
Trading long-term gains for short-term impact may seem like the expedient choice, except for one lingering question: What if the most expensive decision is not going to college at all?
—Judy D. Olian, TIME, 13 Mar. 2025
Justin Chang, New Yorker, 4 Apr. 2025
Yet many districts still prioritize simplistic, politically expedient metrics over nuanced analysis.
—Scott White, Forbes.com, 28 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for expedient
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Adjective
Finding someone to out-Trump Trump might look like an expedient solution to an immediate problem.
—Gal Beckerman, The Atlantic, 20 Mar. 2025
Trading long-term gains for short-term impact may seem like the expedient choice, except for one lingering question: What if the most expensive decision is not going to college at all?
—Judy D. Olian, TIME, 13 Mar. 2025
Noun
Not for them the merciful expedient of a minor flesh wound or a swift death.
—Justin Chang, New Yorker, 4 Apr. 2025
Yet many districts still prioritize simplistic, politically expedient metrics over nuanced analysis.
—Scott White, Forbes.com, 28 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for expedient
Cite this Entry
“Expedient.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/expedient. Accessed 5 May. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
expedient
1 of 2 adjective
ex·pe·di·ent
ik-ˈspēd-ē-ənt
: suitable for bringing about a desired result often without regard to what is fair or right
expediently
adverb
expedient
2 of 2 noun
: a means to accomplish an end
especially
: one used in place of a better means that is not available
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