as in corruptible
open to improper influence and especially bribery
that judge is known for being venal and easily bought
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Recent Examples of venal
Bill Nighy plays a venal spycraft master who also is surprisingly good at computer coding.
—
Mark Kennedy, Boston Herald, 29 Jan. 2026
Even though a lot of what happens in the book borders on the ridiculous because of the behavior of narcissistic selfish venal individuals.
—David Canfield, HollywoodReporter, 26 Dec. 2025
One argued that what Janis took to be a herd mentality might just as well be seen as deliberate, venal compliance.
—David Merritt Johns, The Atlantic, 2 Nov. 2025
Berger and Nina Gold cast Tilda Swinton as Cynthia Blithe, the private investigator who tracks him, laser like, to China, with Fala Chen playing Dao Ming, the savvy hostess who sees something behind Doyle’s desperate tactics, and Alex Jennings as an expat of the most venal variety.
—Baz Bamigboye, Deadline, 2 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for venal
Mark Kennedy, Boston Herald, 29 Jan. 2026
Even though a lot of what happens in the book borders on the ridiculous because of the behavior of narcissistic selfish venal individuals.
—David Canfield, HollywoodReporter, 26 Dec. 2025
One argued that what Janis took to be a herd mentality might just as well be seen as deliberate, venal compliance.
—David Merritt Johns, The Atlantic, 2 Nov. 2025
Berger and Nina Gold cast Tilda Swinton as Cynthia Blithe, the private investigator who tracks him, laser like, to China, with Fala Chen playing Dao Ming, the savvy hostess who sees something behind Doyle’s desperate tactics, and Alex Jennings as an expat of the most venal variety.
—Baz Bamigboye, Deadline, 2 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for venal
Recent Examples of Synonyms for venal
Adjective
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Beef’s whole thing is finding the weak, corruptible center of all its characters, and Isaac jumps into that project with enthusiasm.—
Joe Reid,
Vulture,
2 May 2026
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From fragmented records to corruptible datasets and the general noise across social media, agentic systems are facing a trust and truth crisis at the most fundamental level.—
Lawrence Wintermeyer,
Forbes.com,
11 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Fujimori is linked to the authoritarian and corrupt legacy of the government of her late father, Alberto Fujimori, in the 1990s.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
7 June 2026
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Of course, all of this convenient acquiescence will sound familiar in the United States, where our own Congress and Department of Justice have been nothing if not servile to a brazenly corrupt executive.—
Daniel Alarcón,
New Yorker,
4 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Venal.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/venal. Accessed 8 Jun. 2026.
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