A.Word.A.Day --expediency

A.Word.A.Day

About | Media | Search | Contact

Home

Today's Word

Yesterday's Word

expediency

PRONUNCIATION:

(ek-SPEE-dee-uhn-see)

MEANING:

noun:
1. Consideration of what is advantageous or easy or immediate over what is right.
2. The quality of being suited for a purpose.

ETYMOLOGY:

From Latin expedire (to make ready, to set the feet free), from ex- (out of) + ped- (foot). Ultimately from the Indo-European root ped- (foot) which gave us peccadillo (alluding to a stumble or fall), pedal, impeccable, podium, octopus, and impeach.

USAGE:

"Political expediency means that a lot of planning is still short term."
Elizabeth Sidiropoulos & Lyal White; How Brazil Beats Poverty Trap; Mail & Guardian (Johannesburg, South Africa); Aug 25, 2009.

See more usage examples of expediency in Vocabulary.com's dictionary.

A THOUGHT FOR TODAY:

Let no man pull you low enough to hate him. -Martin Luther King, Jr., civil-rights leader (1929-1968)

We need your help

Help us continue to spread the magic of words to readers everywhere

Donate

Subscriber Services
Awards | Stats | Links | Privacy Policy
Contribute | Advertise