mercenary.

1. A soldier who serves primarily as a hired combatant rather than from membership in the force’s political community.

2. Primarily concerned with personal financial reward, often without regard to other values.

Use it for

Words that belong together

• a hired mercenary
• a band of mercenaries

On the page

The mercenary asked who would pay the wounded before agreeing to the march.

They hired mercenaries after the local levy refused to leave the valley.

Usage notes

Primary category: psychological / character. Forms: Singular mercenary; plural mercenaries. Adjective comparison more mercenary; most mercenary. Legacy lexical fields mirror sense 1 only. Use numbered sense fields for all meanings.