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

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

Following coups in all three nations in recent years, the ruling juntas have expelled French forces and turned to Russia’s mercenary units for security assistance instead. — Molly Quell, Los Angeles Times, 28 Apr. 2026