Dictionary
Find
in
Dictionary
Thesaurus
Translations

Click to move up the list of words
mercantile
mercantile system
mercantilism
mercaptan
mercaptobenzthiazole
mercaptopurine
Mercator Projection
Merced
mercenary
mercer
mercerize
merchandise
merchandising
merchandize
merchant
merchant account
merchant bank
Click to move down the list of words
Also available:

World English Dictionary
Dictionnaire Français

mercenary

mer·ce·nar·y [ múrss'n èrree ]


noun  (plural mer·ce·nar·ies)
Definition:
 
1. soldier fighting for money: a professional soldier paid to fight for an army other than that of his or her country

2. somebody interested only in profit: an employee who works only for personal gain



adjective 
Definition:
 
1. motivated only by money: motivated solely by a desire for money

2. relating to mercenaries: paid to serve in a foreign army, or consisting of mercenaries

[14th century. Directly or via French mercenaire< Latin mercen(n)arius "hireling" < merces "wages"]

mer·ce·nar·i·ly adverb
mer·ce·nar·i·ness noun
Advertisement

© 2009 Microsoft