expedient 1 of 2

expedient

2 of 2

noun

1
as in substitute
a temporary replacement if you're a spectator caught without rainwear at a sporting event, then a plastic garbage bag makes an acceptable, if unfashionable, expedient

Synonyms & Similar Words

2
3
as in opportunity
something that one uses to accomplish an end especially when the usual means is not available since there wasn't a single bandage left in our backpacks, we had to use a bandanna, our only expedient

Synonyms & Similar Words

Synonym Chooser

How is the word expedient distinct from other similar adjectives?

The words advisable and politic are common synonyms of expedient. While all three words mean "dictated by practical or prudent motives," expedient usually implies what is immediately advantageous without regard for ethics or consistent principles.

a politically expedient decision

How is advisable related to other words for expedient?

Advisable applies to what is practical, prudent, or advantageous but lacks the derogatory implication of expedient and politic.

sometimes it's advisable to say nothing

When could politic be used to replace expedient?

While in some cases nearly identical to expedient, politic stresses judiciousness and tactical value but usually implies some lack of candor or sincerity.

a politic show of interest

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of expedient
Adjective
The constitution is meant to provide a stable framework for our government, not a patchwork of temporary fixes or politically expedient changes. Letters To The Editor, The Orlando Sentinel, 13 July 2025 In a video interview, Sophie de Lint, the Dutch company’s director, said co-productions were environmentally necessary, not merely financially expedient. A.j. Goldmann, New York Times, 20 May 2025
Noun
Hiring within the law almost certainly will mean offering higher wages or better working conditions and exploring greater automation, expedients that other American industries take for granted. The Editors, National Review, 30 June 2025 And members of the Trump administration have mounted continual attacks on diversity, equity and inclusion policies and used the term as a politically expedient slur to deride Black people. Timothy Welbeck, The Conversation, 16 June 2025 See All Example Sentences for expedient
Recent Examples of Synonyms for expedient
Adjective
  • This additional layer of lateral thinking is almost never prudent, and usually serves to kill both guardians quicker (and instill a killer headache).
    Christopher Cruz, Rolling Stone, 18 Sep. 2025
  • Cramer said Fed Chair Jerome Powell is prudent, which is a desirable characteristic for those in his position.
    Julie Coleman, CNBC, 17 Sep. 2025
Noun
  • Florian Wirtz, a £116m arrival from Bayer Leverkusen, was another second-half substitute for the Premier League champions.
    Oliver Kay, New York Times, 21 Sep. 2025
  • Black walnuts are the local favorite, but hazelnuts, which also grow in the area, are a fine substitute.
    Sheri Castle, Southern Living, 20 Sep. 2025
Noun
  • The future of this rapidly expanding means of devising software by tapping into the generative capabilities of modern-era AI, such as ChatGPT, Claude, Llama, Grok, Gemini, and other large language models, will be discussed.
    Lance Eliot, Forbes.com, 18 Sep. 2025
  • Such compounds can form by other means, such as, for example, the electrochemical reduction of carbon dioxide.
    Dirk Schulze-Makuch, Big Think, 17 Sep. 2025
Noun
  • According to San Diego’s Acting Chief Innovation Officer Alexander Hempton, Mayor Gloria is urging his team to use this moment of financial strain as an opportunity to propose new ideas and work in new ways without sacrificing effectiveness.
    U T Editorial Board, San Diego Union-Tribune, 20 Sep. 2025
  • The schools that win will signal where education is heading — and where the opportunities lie.
    Jaime Catmull, Forbes.com, 19 Sep. 2025
Adjective
  • The aluminum-creation process begins with bauxite ore, a raw material that contains desirable aluminum-rich minerals but also a host of impurities including silica and iron and titanium oxides.
    New Atlas, New Atlas, 17 Sep. 2025
  • Cramer said Fed Chair Jerome Powell is prudent, which is a desirable characteristic for those in his position.
    Julie Coleman, CNBC, 17 Sep. 2025
Noun
  • Demand-side measures are the right approach.
    Joel Thayer, MSNBC Newsweek, 16 Sep. 2025
  • In a 2013 survey of criminologists, public health scholars, and legal academics, an assault weapons ban was ranked the single most effective measure among 20 policy options for reducing mass shootings.
    John J. Donohue, Time, 15 Sep. 2025
Noun
  • That somehow or other, all of a sudden, their request for a merger or for some other transaction was now slowed for a year or two years or three years, causing irreparable harm, but with no recourse that the company would have.
    Max Tani, semafor.com, 19 Sep. 2025
  • Court filings, however, note a likely cause for the council's uncommon move for recourse.
    Killian Baarlaer, Louisville Courier Journal, 18 Sep. 2025
Adjective
  • Either by choice or otherwise, Wolves lost seven players who appeared regularly in the first team last season and brought in six new faces, so numbers-wise, there is little difference.
    Steve Madeley, New York Times, 15 Sep. 2025
  • The measure further reduces offshore drilling, but the effort to compensate in a region that is highly dependent on the oil industry was a wise move.
    The Editorial Board, Oc Register, 15 Sep. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Expedient.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/expedient. Accessed 21 Sep. 2025.

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