AVARICE Synonyms: 60 Similar and Opposite Words

avarice

noun

ˈa-və-rəs

Definition of avarice next

as in greed

an intense selfish desire for wealth or possessions the bank official's embezzlement was motivated by pure avarice

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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 avarice Goodwill is corrupted on arrival by the modern virtue of avarice. —

Andy Andersen, Vulture, 23 Mar. 2026 But the damage this episode of Europe-bashing and open colonial avarice has done is real and enduring. —

Nick Paton Walsh, CNN Money, 21 Jan. 2026 Certainly there’s a long and distinguished tradition of associating Jewish arrivistes with entrepreneurialism, avarice, and clannishness. —

Gideon Lewis-Kraus, New Yorker, 24 Nov. 2025 Advertisement For years, Khan condemned graft and personal avarice. —

Rafia Zakaria, Time, 6 Nov. 2025 See All Example Sentences for avarice

Recent Examples of Synonyms for avarice

greed

Noun

His fragile starman is a strange, complex being navigating his way through Earth’s obstacles, including love, lust, addiction, greed, and ambition in his plight to save his planet and survive the chaos caused by his arrival.

— Jeff Spry, Space.com, 29 May 2026
Crichton goes to a lot of effort to give plausible explanation to the harvesting and recombination of dinosaur DNA, and the mistakes that the involved human beings make are ones of ego, greed, and—more or less—neglecting to double-check their homework before turning it in.

— Ian Mackenzie, Literary Hub, 27 May 2026