What does expedient mean?

Definitions for expedient
ɪkˈspi di əntex·pe·di·ent

This dictionary definitions page includes all the possible meanings, example usage and translations of the word expedient.

Princeton's WordNet

  1. expedientadjective

    a means to an end; not necessarily a principled or ethical one

  2. expedientadjective

    serving to promote your interest

    "was merciful only when mercy was expedient"

  3. expedientadjective

    appropriate to a purpose; practical

    "in the circumstances it was expedient to express loyalty"

Wiktionary

  1. expedientnoun

    A method or means for achieving a particular result, especially when direct or efficient; a resource.

  2. expedientadjective

    Simple, easy, or quick; convenient.

    Most people, faced with a decision, will choose the most expedient option.

  3. expedientadjective

    Governed by self-interest, often short-term self-interest.

  4. Etymology: From expediens (stem expedient-), present participle of expedire, from ex + pes

Samuel Johnson's Dictionary

  1. EXPEDIENTadjective

    Etymology: expedit, Latin.

    All things are not expedient: in things indifferent there is a choice; they are not always equally expedient. Richard Hooker, b. ii.

    When men live as if there were no God, it becomes expedient for them that there should be none; and then they endeavour to persuade themselves so. John Tillotson, Sermons.

    The adverse winds,
    Whose leisure I have staid, have given him time
    To land his legions all as soon as I:
    His marches are expedient to this town. William Shakespeare, King John.

  2. Expedientnoun

    Etymology: from the adjective.

    God, who delights not to grieve the children of men, does not project for our sorrow, but our innocence; and would never have invited us to the one, but as an expedient to the other. Decay of Piety.

    Th’ expedient pleas’d, where neither lost his right;
    Mars had the day, and Venus had the night. Dryden.

    He flies to a new expedient to solve the matter, and supposes an earth of a make and frame like that of Des Cartes. John Woodward.

Wikipedia

  1. expedient

    Landmark Media Enterprises, LLC (a spinoff of Landmark Communications, Inc.) is a privately held media company headquartered in Norfolk, Virginia specializing in newspaper publishing, Internet publishing and software.

ChatGPT

  1. expedient

    Expedient is an adjective that describes something as convenient and practical, even though it might be improper or immoral. Alternatively, as a noun, it refers to a means of attaining an end, particularly one that is convenient but may be improper or immoral.

Webster Dictionary

  1. Expedientadjective

    hastening or forward; hence, tending to further or promote a proposed object; fit or proper under the circumstances; conducive to self-interest; desirable; advisable; advantageous; -- sometimes contradistinguished from right

  2. Expedientadjective

    quick; expeditious

  3. Expedientnoun

    that which serves to promote or advance; suitable means to accomplish an end

  4. Expedientnoun

    means devised in an exigency; shift

  5. Etymology: [L. expediens, -entis, p. pr. of expedire to be expedient, release, extricate: cf. F. expdient. See Expedite.]

Chambers 20th Century Dictionary

  1. Expedient

    eks-pē′di-ent, adj. suitable: advisable: (Shak.) hasty.—n. that which serves to promote: means suitable to an end: contrivance.—ns. Expē′dience (Shak.), haste, despatch: expediency; Expē′diency, fitness: desirableness: self-interest.—adj. Expedien′tial.—adv. Expē′diently. [L. expediens, -entis, pr.p. of expedīre.]

Dictionary of Nautical Terms

  1. expedient

    A stratagem in warfare.

Military Dictionary and Gazetteer

  1. expedient

    A stratagem in warfare.

How to pronounce expedient?

How to say expedient in sign language?

Numerology

  1. Chaldean Numerology

    The numerical value of expedient in Chaldean Numerology is: 6

  2. Pythagorean Numerology

    The numerical value of expedient in Pythagorean Numerology is: 3

Examples of expedient in a Sentence

  1. Carolyn Wang:

    What we're building is a triage tool that will live on ProjectBaseline.com, and we plan to pilot it in California next week, our aspiration is for the triage tool to be used much more broadly over time. Initially, we're linking it with several sites in the Bay Area to test and iterate, and collaborating closely with organizations like Quest Diagnostics and Labcorp who are also working on additional approaches to making testing more accessible and expedient in other areas.

  2. Alexander Bortnikov:

    Until we know the real reasons for what happened, I consider it expedient to stop Russian flights to Egypt, above all, this concerns tourist routes.

  3. Catherine The Great:

    The most sure, but at the same time the most difficult expedient to mend the morals of the people, is a perfect system of education.

  4. Thomas Alva Edison:

    There is no expedient to which a man will not go to avoid the labor of thinking.

  5. Nicole Malliotakis:

    What we're seeing from our elected leaders is they want to follow the silence only when it fits their narrative and what's politically, politically expedient for them, you're seeing this on the education front with President Biden and you're also seeing it, by the way, with reopening our restaurants here in New York City.

Popularity rank by frequency of use

expedient#10000#34267#100000

Translations for expedient

From our Multilingual Translation Dictionary

  • وسيلةArabic
  • способ, средство, целесъобразен, удобен, начинBulgarian
  • formålstjenligtDanish
  • Hilfsmittel, Ausweg, Nothilfe, zweckmäßig, Mittel, ratsam, Notlösung, nützlich, AusfluchtGerman
  • उपायHindi
  • célszerűHungarian
  • espediente, escamotage, opportunoItalian
  • 편리한Korean
  • целисходен, целисходно средство, целесообразенMacedonian
  • eenvoudig, uitgekookt, snel, uitweg, redmiddel, slimmigheidDutch
  • bekvemmelighetNorwegian
  • expeditive, expeditiv, expeditivă, expeditiviRomanian
  • уловка, удобный, приём, простойRussian
  • ändamålsenligSwedish
  • münasip, yardımcı, çözüm, yerinde, uygunTurkish
  • متوقعUrdu
  • 权宜Chinese

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"expedient." Definitions.net. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 25 Apr. 2024. <https://www.definitions.net/definition/expedient>.

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