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ENGLISH · A WORD WITH POSSIBILITIES

expedient.

Suitable to effect some desired end or the purpose intended.

9 characters3 syllables approx.English language

Meaning & usage

adj/ɪkˈspiːdi.ənt/
  1. Suitable to effect some desired end or the purpose intended.

    Most people, faced with a decision, will choose the most expedient option.
  2. Affording short-term benefit, often at the expense of the long-term.

  3. Governed by self-interest, often short-term self-interest.

  4. Expeditious, quick, rapid.

    obsolete
Where this word comes from

From Middle English expedient, from Old French expedient, from Latin expediens (stem expedient-), present participle of expedire (“to bring forward, to dispatch, to expedite; impers. to be profitable, serviceable, advantageous, expedient”), from ex (“out”) + pēs (“foot, hoof”).

noun/ɪkˈspiːdi.ənt/
  1. A method or means for achieving a particular result, especially when direct or efficient; a resource.

Where this word comes from

From Middle English expedient, from Old French expedient, from Latin expediens (stem expedient-), present participle of expedire (“to bring forward, to dispatch, to expedite; impers. to be profitable, serviceable, advantageous, expedient”), from ex (“out”) + pēs (“foot, hoof”).

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Definitions, grammatical labels, IPA, etymology and examples: Wiktionary contributors, extracted by Kaikki / Wiktextract. Adapted under CC BY-SA 4.0. Selected fields and authored examples are shown; third-party quotations and audio are omitted. See contributor history.

Last enriched 2026-09-10. Definitions are in English. Romanizations are shown when supplied by the source; syllable estimates are omitted for unsupported scripts.