Definition of NEPOTISM

Nepotism Has Papal Origins

During his papacy from 1471-1484, Sixtus IV granted many special favors to members of his family, in particular his nephews. This practice of papal favoritism was carried on by his successors, and in 1667 it was the subject of Gregorio Leti's book Il Nepotismo di Roma-titled in the English translation, The History of the Popes' Nephews. Shortly after the book's appearance, nepotism began to be used in English for the showing of special favor or unfair preference to any relative by someone in any position of power, be it ecclesiastical or not. (The "nep-" spelling is from nepote, a 17th-century variant of Italian nipote, meaning "nephew.")

Examples of nepotism in a Sentence

Nepotism has hurt the company.

Recent Examples on the Web

Liberia’s economy has grown enormously since the civil war but many feel Johnson Sirleaf could have achieved more; the president has been accused of nepotism and failing to crack down on corruption. — Nick Powell, Houston Chronicle, "David Collins named winner over incumbent Maceo in closely contested Galveston council race," 14 May 2018 Ideally, many former Soviet ruling elites, including those in Armenia, would like to see the revolution fail.’’ The uprising sent a clear message that nepotism and corruption cannot prevail indefinitely, Gevorgyan said. — Washington Post, BostonGlobe.com, "Armenian Parliament elects opposition leader as prime minister," 8 May 2018 The biggest obstacles and difficulties are due to lack of state support, lack of courage and daring on the part of Spain’s publishing houses, the nepotism in the cultural media and favoritism in the culture in general. — New York Times, "In Spain, Searching for Ancestors, Dry Wine and Calm Seas," 16 Jan. 2018 And though it might be seen as nepotism (Schwartzman is Coppola’s cousin), Schwartzman occupies the part with a sad clown grace that eventually leads to quiet resolve. — refinery29.com, "Why Marie Antoinette Is Really Mean Girls, Versailles Edition," 10 July 2018 As a result, areas exposed to the church for longer developed more impersonal norms, like individualism and impartial treatment, as opposed to obedience and nepotism. — Kevin Lewis, BostonGlobe.com, "Looking for negative signals," 6 July 2018 The term refers to the common use of nepotism and cronyism in daily life, especially in hiring. — The Christian Science Monitor, "The source of Jordan’s river of discontent," 11 June 2018 Not after nepotism got him the job — his father, Jerry, took over the team in 2015, then plucked Bryan, twice a failure elsewhere, from the NBA scrap heap. — Marcus Hayes, Philly.com, "Could Bryan Colangelo have saved his job if he handled Twittergate differently, throwing his wife under the bus? | Marcus Hayes," 9 June 2018 Most research shows takeovers are generally successful when used to fix dysfunctional central offices, especially in cases involving nepotism or financial malfeasance. — Mandy Mclaren, The Courier-Journal, "Research: Takeovers of urban districts like JCPS usually don't work," 31 May 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'nepotism.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.