Quantcast
 
Dictionary
Thesaurus
Encyclopedia
Translator
Web
Related Searches
Synonyms
Nearby Words

expedient

 - 3 dictionary results
Baltimore Technology Park
Maryland& DC's Premier Data Center and Secure Colocation Facility
www.BaltimoreTechnologyPark.com

ex⋅pe⋅di⋅ent

  [ik-spee-dee-uhnt]
–adjective
1. tending to promote some proposed or desired object; fit or suitable for the purpose; proper under the circumstances: It is expedient that you go.
2. conducive to advantage or interest, as opposed to right.
3. acting in accordance with expediency.
–noun
4. a means to an end: The ladder was a useful expedient for getting to the second floor.
5. a means devised or employed in an exigency; resource; shift: Use any expedients you think necessary to get over the obstacles in your way.
Use expedient in a Sentence
Origin:
1350–1400; ME < L expedient- (s. of expediēns), prp. of expedīre. See expedite, -ent

Related forms:
ex⋅pe⋅di⋅ent⋅ly, adverb

Synonyms:
1. advisable, appropriate, desirable; advantageous, profitable. 5. device, contrivance, resort.

Antonyms:
1. disadvantageous.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2010.
Cite This Source Link To expedient
Baltimore Technology Park
Maryland& DC's Premier Data Center and Secure Colocation Facility
www.BaltimoreTechnologyPark.com
ex·pe·di·ent   (ĭk-spē'dē-ənt)   
adj.  

  1. Appropriate to a purpose.

    1. Serving to promote one's interest: was merciful only when mercy was expedient.

    2. Based on or marked by a concern for self-interest rather than principle; self-interested.

  3. Obsolete Speedy; expeditious.

n.  

  1. Something that is a means to an end.

  2. Something contrived or used to meet an urgent need. See Synonyms at makeshift.


[Middle English, from Latin expediēns, expedient-, present participle of expedīre, to make ready; see expedite.]
ex·pe'di·ent·ly adv.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Word Origin & History

expedient 
1398, "advantageous, fit, proper" (adj.), from L. expedientem (nom. expediens) "beneficial," prp. of expedire "make fit or ready, prepare" (see expedite). The noun meaning "a device adopted in an exigency, a resource" is from 1653.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
Cite This Source
Search another word or see expedient on Thesaurus | Reference
FacebookTwitterFollow us:
Partner Sites:
ExpediaHotelsHotwireLife123LiveDailyThe Daily BeastUrbanspoonAsk AnswersBloglinesSendori