Meaning & use
expedient
Last updated
Convenient and practical, though possibly improper or unprincipled.
See it in a sentence
Cutting corners on safety inspections seemed expedient at the time but caused disaster later.
Lying to avoid the meeting felt expedient, though she regretted it afterward.
A note on using this word
Carries a subtle negative undertone, suggesting a choice made for convenience rather than because it's right.
Words with a similar meaning
convenientpractical
Choose a synonym to suit the sentence. Meanings can overlap without being identical.
Words with an opposite meaning
principledproper
Another way to use it
2. noun
A means of achieving an end, especially one that is convenient but not necessarily fair or moral.
Rationing was adopted as a wartime expedient.
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