venality

noun

Definition of venalitynext
as in shamelessness

Related Words

Relevance

Dissimilar Words

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 venality There will be controversy, grift and venality, supporters will get lost and lose themselves in a fog of legalese, accounting and abbreviations — VAR, SCR, LOL, FFS — there will be ugliness and misgivings and a lot of meh. — George Caulkin, New York Times, 25 Aug. 2026 The same amount of venality and virtue exists today as did back then, and so human nature just doesn’t change. — Ted Johnson, Deadline, 2 July 2026 The once-vaunted values of public life are now reduced to the lower standards of private life—venality, vulgarity, rudeness, incontinence, and ignorance. — Simon Sebag Montefiore, The Atlantic, 28 June 2026 Advertisement This is not the first time that Milei, who rose to power in part with attacks on the venality of Argentina’s elite, has been tarred with corruption accusations. — Ian Bremmer, Time, 10 Oct. 2025 Humor savors an infirmity — a foible, a failing, a venality, a flaw. — Big Think, 23 Sep. 2025 Somehow, the upper hand never lingers long with Sally and Barnaby, drolly played by Gunning and Corden as a conniving Tweedledee and Tweedledum, loyal to no one and convinced their venality is justified by their father’s history of terrible parenting. — David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 9 Sep. 2025 The New Yorker’s Talk writer was similarly blinkered and callous, treating Grey like a consenting partner and Chaplin as a dual victim, of his mother-in-law’s venality and of Middle America’s moral prejudices. — Richard Brody, New Yorker, 25 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for venality
  1. shamelessness
  2. profligacy
  3. debasement
  4. baseness
  5. corruption
  6. decadence
  7. degradation
  8. degeneracy
Noun
  • The lucrative example paved the way for more than two decades of musical theater shamelessness.
    — Theater Critic, Los Angeles Times, 30 May 2026
  • The world has gotten a glimpse of the fawning, skeezy shamelessness of his famous hangers-on, but not enough to criminally implicate them.
    — Charlie Warzel, The Atlantic, 14 Feb. 2026
Definition of shamelessness
Noun
  • His first-half profligacy, at odds with his attacking threat, exemplified that notion.
    — Jacob Tanswell, New York Times, 13 Aug. 2026
  • Such profligacy slows real income growth, deters hiring, discourages innovation and drives up interest rates.
    — Editorial, Boston Herald, 30 Mar. 2026
Definition of profligacy
Noun
  • The debasement trade is experiencing a revival, and that could catapult bitcoin to a new all-time high, according to Bernstein.
    — Liz Napolitano, CNBC, 26 Aug. 2026
  • As a tail-risk hedge — specifically against financial system stress, currency debasement, and geopolitical crisis — gold's track record is stronger and more consistent.
    — Jason Kirsch, Forbes.com, 8 July 2026
Definition of debasement
Noun
  • The horror has come now like a storm— what if this night prefigured the night after death— what if all thereafter was an eternal quivering on the edge of an abyss, with everything base and vicious in oneself urging one forward and the baseness and viciousness of the world just ahead.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 3 Mar. 2026
Definition of baseness
Noun
  • The two candidates have gone head-to-head in recent weeks over support of police and plans to fight corruption in what’s sure to be one of the top races to watch this fall.
    — Keely Doll, Louisville Courier Journal, 3 Sep. 2026
  • The alleged corruption occurred between 2019-24 while Hédouville headed the Office of Citizen Protection, the government agency charged with safeguarding human rights.
    — Jacqueline Charles, Miami Herald, 3 Sep. 2026
Definition of corruption
Noun
  • One student told Leahy that the problem wasn’t decadence but an obsession with achievement and perfection.
    — Deputy Managing Editor, Los Angeles Times, 1 Sep. 2026
  • The marrow adds decadence to what appears to be, at first glance, just another pair of smashed patties slipped inside a sesame seed bun.
    — Warren Rojas, Washington Post, 19 Aug. 2026
Definition of decadence
Noun
  • The species’ coastal habitats, such as mangroves and reefs, have also suffered loss and degradation due to urban development and climate change.
    — Adriana Pérez, Chicago Tribune, 31 Aug. 2026
  • There is no warping, no heat distortion and no structural degradation.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 29 Aug. 2026
Definition of degradation
Noun
  • Speaking to the Freedom Fighters club in Arlington July 1, Hall said moral degeneracy, discipline issues and low literacy rates are products of removing the Bible from classrooms.
    — Rachel Royster. Produced with AI assistance, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 9 July 2026
  • The team found that a near-infrared resolving power of at least 40 is the minimum needed to break that degeneracy.
    — Paul Sutter, Space.com, 10 June 2026
Definition of degeneracy

Browse Nearby Words

venal
venality
vend
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Venality.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/venality. Accessed 4 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of apiary

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

A List of Most Commonly Confused Words

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

Stay Woke

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Words of the Week - Sept. 4
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

The Longest Long Words List

Stay Woke
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
anagrams on a chalk board
Word Builder Quiz Vol. 2 Pick the letter that when added to a word will ma...
See All