pecuniary interest

Meaning

1. 1nouncountableformallegalbusiness

   A financial stake or potential financial benefit that someone has in a decision or situation.

   Grammar: Countable; you can say 'a pecuniary interest' or 'pecuniary interests'. Often used in the phrase 'have a pecuniary interest in something'.

   Patterns

   • have a pecuniary interest in something
   • declare a pecuniary interest
   • a pecuniary interest in a company

   The judge had to step down because she had a pecuniary interest in the outcome of the case.

   All board members must declare any pecuniary interest before the vote.

   He was accused of hiding his pecuniary interest in the land deal.

Word forms

Common combinations

declare a pecuniary interest

Politicians are required to declare a pecuniary interest in any relevant debate.

have a pecuniary interest in

She has a pecuniary interest in the company that won the contract.

pecuniary interest in a matter

Any pecuniary interest in the matter must be reported to the committee.

disclose a pecuniary interest

He failed to disclose a pecuniary interest in the property.

Synonyms and how they differ

financial interest

A more common and less formal way to say the same thing; it can also include non-cash benefits, while 'pecuniary' specifically means money.

material interest

A broader legal term that can include non-financial benefits; 'pecuniary' is narrower and strictly about money.

Word family

pecuniary adjective

Relating to money; e.g., 'pecuniary loss' means financial loss.

pecuniarily adverb

In a financial way; very rare and formal.

Commonly confused: pecuniary interest or peculiar?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “pecuniary interest”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

Explore more words