venal

adjective ve·nal \ ˈvē-nᵊl \

Definition of venal

1 :capable of being bought or obtained for money or other valuable consideration :purchasable; especially :open to corrupt influence and especially bribery :mercenary

a venal legislator

2 :originating in, characterized by, or associated with corrupt bribery

a venal arrangement with the police

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venality

play \vi-ˈna-lə-tē\ noun

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venally

play \ˈvē-nᵊl-ē\ adverb

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venal was our Word of the Day on 05/09/2011. Hear the podcast!

Examples of venal in a Sentence

that judge is known for being venal and easily bought

Recent Examples of venal from the Web

These scandals only reveal that Silicon Valley is just as venal and sexist as Wall Street ever was.

— maya kosoff, The Hive, "A Fake Mayo Company, a Jaden Smith Lawsuit, and the End of the Silicon Valley Dream," 3 Aug. 2017
The key fictionalized character (for legal reasons), a venal, sociopathic police officer played by Will Poulter, is based on an officer found not guilty in court by an all-white jury.

— michael phillips, Detroit Free Press, "Review: ‘Detroit’ is relentless and, alas, still relevant," 27 July 2017
The venal glee Lithgow takes from his character belittling Beatriz.

— chris hewitt, Twin Cities, "‘Beatriz at Dinner’ is lukewarm and full of issues," 14 June 2017
This clever hack exploits our most primal needs for affirmation, generally from the most venal of motivations.

— Longreads, "A Sociology of the Smartphone," 14 June 2017
But Peña Nieto has fared poorly as president, weakened by scandals, disappointing growth and the perception that Mexico’s ruling class is irredeemably venal and out of touch.

— nick miroff, Washington Post, "An election in the heartland of Mexico’s ruling party shows where country may be headed," 2 June 2017
Venal politicians continue sucking the blood of the Republic.

— john kass, chicagotribune.com, "Rejuvenated Fire face test in Orlando," 1 June 2017
But amid even the worst federal scandals, Watergate included, the country has never been nationally profiled as crooked—a venal society from coast to coast, from dogcatcher to commander-in-chief.

— tim padgett, Bloomberg.com, "Brazil’s Car Wash Scandal Reveals a Country Soaked in Corruption," 25 May 2017
America is, at its core, a nasty, venal, selfish and racist culture.

— jason johnson, The Root, "Yes, Trump Voters Will Stick With Him Forever," 24 May 2017

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

Did You Know?

If you are given the choice between acts that are "venal" and those that are "venial," go for the venial. Although the two words look and sound alike, they have very different meanings and histories. "Venal" demonstrates the adage that anything can be had if the price is high enough and the morals are low enough. That word originated with the Latin venum, which simply referred to something that was sold or for sale. Some of those transactions must have been rather shady, because by the mid-1600s, "venal" had gained the sense of corruption it carries today. "Venial" sins, on the other hand, are pardonable, the kind that show that everyone makes mistakes sometimes. That forgiving term descends from "venia," Latin for favor, "indulgence," or "pardon."

Origin and Etymology of venal

borrowed from Latin vēnālis "that may be bought, for sale," from *vēnus "sale" (attested only in accusative vēnum and dative vēnō, vēnuī; akin to Greek ônos "price," Sanskrit vasna- "price, value") + -ālis ¹-al

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First Known Use: 1652

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