Mercenary

Mercenary

Noun / Adjective · /ˈmɜː.sɪ.nər.i/

Definition

(Noun) a professional soldier who is hired to fight for any party willing to pay, without loyalty to a particular cause or country; (Adjective) primarily motivated by money or financial gain rather than principle, loyalty, or other values; hireling; venal.

Origin

From Latin mercenarius (one who works for pay, a hireling), from merces (reward, wages, pay), from merx (goods, merchandise, from which merchant and merchandise also derive). The same merx root gives commerce, mercantile, market, and mercy — the last from the sense of God's gracious gift or reward. The word has been in English since the 14th century, with both noun and adjective uses from early on.