mercenary
Example Sentences
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People tell me all the time that they’re done with college sports, that it’s become mercenary and unrecognizable, and yet the numbers keep going up, up, up.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 26, 2026
Characterizing the outrage that followed as a strategic error feels a little mercenary.
From Slate ● Aug. 17, 2026
In a 2024 exposé on Bowlero’s rise, Amos Barshad introduced a now-familiar category of villain — the private-equity vulture — as more than the average mercenary buying up distressed properties and selling off their parts.
From Salon ● Jul. 3, 2026
Russia's mercenary Wagner Group, which had been fighting with Malian forces against jihadists since 2021, ended its involvement in June 2025.
From Barron's ● Apr. 25, 2026
Now I know Mother will shake her head, and the girls say, “Oh, the mercenary little wretch!”
From "Little Women" by Louisa May Alcott
Despite trumpeting pan-African and pro-independence messages, all three have welcomed Russian mercenaries to help fight jihadists loyal to either Al-Qaeda or the Islamic State group, who have run rampant across the three countries.
From Barron's ● Sep. 1, 2026
"We're not mercenaries," he said in a 2021 interview, describing himself as pursuing "a burlesque form of pacifism."
From Barron's ● Aug. 24, 2026
A band of Greek mercenaries were stranded without provisions or protection.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 27, 2026
The corsairs, sometimes defining themselves as a naval mujahideen, also acted as mercenaries or proxies.
From Salon ● Jul. 4, 2026
The two mercenaries turned and raised eyebrows at each other.
From "The Name of the Wind" by Patrick Rothfuss
Vocabulary lists containing mercenary
Material World: Shopping Lingo
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100 Words to Make You Sound Smart
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The American Revolution - Introductory
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