Synonyms of mercenary

mercenary

adjective

as in greedy

having or marked by an eager and often selfish desire especially for material possessions

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

Synonyms & Similar Words

• greedy
• eager
• avaricious
• acquisitive
• covetous
• avid
• grasping
• rapacious
• moneygrubbing
• coveting
• materialistic
• grabby
• desirous
• miserly
• piggish
• insatiable
• egocentric
• hoggish
• ravenous
• gluttonous
• piggy
• discontented
• grudging
• malcontent
• egotistic
• commercialistic
• unquenchable
• egoistic
• resentful
• unsatisfied
• lickerish
• swinish
• voracious
• self-centered
• itchy
• begrudging
• discontent
• devouring
• self-seeking
• philistine
• gobbling

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• charitable
• liberal
• altruistic
• generous
• handsome
• selfless
• unselfish
• magnanimous
• munificent
• controlled
• bountiful
• bounteous
• unsparing
• moderate
• nonmaterialistic
• restrained
• temperate
• content
• openhanded
• openhearted
• satisfied
• freehanded
• greathearted
• sated

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of mercenary

But even measured in the most mercenary terms, using Medi-Cal funds to get Flores mental health care is a good investment. — Megan Greenwell, Bloomberg, 9 June 2026

With his gregarious nature and hard-drinking demeanor, Lobo is an intimidating extraterrestrial mercenary and bounty hunter, but his origin story is brutal, even by those standards. — Jeff Spry, Space.com, 6 June 2026

The battle shaped up with 2,800 Americans facing 8,000 Hessians (mercenary soldiers from six German territories in the Holy Roman Empire. — Richard Lederer, San Diego Union-Tribune, 23 May 2026

The plot is based around a routine jury site visit that turns deadly when a mercenary kill team led by Hewitt (Adkins) storms the location in search of a secret ledger detailing citywide corruption. — Jesse Whittock, Deadline, 13 May 2026