venal

/'vi:nl/

Thân thiện

A venal official accepts a bribe in a shadowy alley.

Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Willing to participate in dishonest or illegal activities, especially bribery, for personal gain: Describes a person, their character, or their actions as being open to corruption, typically through bribery or other financial incentives.
   • Associated with or characterized by bribery: Describes practices, systems, or behaviors that involve the exchange of money or favors for dishonest services.

Usage Examples

• Adjective:
  • The investigation revealed a venal official who accepted bribes to overlook safety violations.
  • A venal judiciary undermines public trust in the entire legal system.
  • His venal motives were clear when he changed his vote after receiving a large campaign donation.

Advanced Usage

• "Venal corruption": A specific type of corruption involving bribery.
  • The country struggled to root out venal corruption within its customs agency.
• "Venal interests": Describes motivations driven purely by the desire for monetary gain.
  • The policy was shaped not by public good but by venal interests.

Variants and Related Words

• Venality (noun): The quality or state of being venal; susceptibility to bribery.
  • The venality of the regime was its ultimate downfall.

Synonyms

• Corruptible: Capable of being morally corrupted.
• Bribable: Willing to accept a bribe.
• Purchasable: Able to be bought or influenced with money.
• Dishonest: Behaving or prone to behave in an untrustworthy or fraudulent way.

Antonyms

• Incorruptible: Incapable of being morally corrupted, especially by bribery.
• Principled: Acting in accordance with morality and showing recognition of right and wrong.
• Honest: Free of deceit; truthful and sincere.

Notes on Meaning

• Primary Connotation: The term venal strongly implies that a person's integrity or actions are . The core idea is a readiness to sacrifice principles for money.
• Distinction from "Corrupt": While "corrupt" is a broader term for dishonest or fraudulent conduct, venal specifically highlights the aspect of the corruption—being bought or bribed. A venal person is inherently corruptible.
• Scope: It can describe individuals (e.g., a ) or abstract concepts (e.g., , a ).

Học thuật

Adjective

1. capable of being corrupted
   • corruptible judges
   • dishonest politicians
   • a purchasable senator
   • a venal police officer

Từ đồng nghĩa

• corruptible
• bribable
• dishonest
• purchasable