mercenary
英 ['mɜːsənəri] 美 ['mɜːrsəneri]
adj.唯利是图的；雇佣的 n.唯利是图的人；雇佣兵
◉词源
Mercenary（雇佣兵）约14世纪进入英语，源自拉丁语 mercenarius（受雇的），来自 merces（报酬、工资）。演变过程：从“为金钱而工作的人”直接扩展为“为报酬而战的士兵”，后引申为“唯利是图的、贪财的”形容词义。词根 merc-（报酬、贸易，PIE merk- “报酬”）；后缀 -ary（表示“与……相关的”或从事者）。
◉外刊例句
① The New York Times, 2025:
The mercenary group has been active in several African conflicts.
这个雇佣兵团体在多个非洲冲突中活跃。
② The Guardian, 2018:
He was accused of being a mercenary who cared only about money.
他被指责为一个只关心金钱的雇佣兵。
◉ Usage Examples
(1) Mercenary men lust for wealth.
(2) He sent 4000 mercenary Genoese crossbowmen against the English line.They were cut down by the English longbowmen.
(3) Mercenary men lust for wealth.
(4) This regiment was entirely composed of mercenary troops.
(5) A mercenary gets involved in a mission that threatens the lives of his kin.
(1) 唯利是图的人贪求财富。
(2) 四千个雇佣的热那亚籍十字弓手奉他命令，向英国阵营进攻，不少死在英国长弓手箭下。
(3) 唯利是图的人贪求财富。
(4) 这个团完全是由雇佣兵组成的。
(5) 一个雇佣兵卷入了一个任务，完成与否关系到他的亲人的安危。
◉ Usage Examples
You might not want to call a mercenary a "hireling" to his face, but a mercenary is, after all, a soldier who gets paid to fight where needed, sometimes taking a heroic stand and other times just wanting payment for fighting.
The word mercenary comes from the Latin mercēnārius, "hireling," which defines someone who will do anything in exchange for money. In history, a mercenary was often a fighter who followed the next paycheck, but in recent decades it's also been used for fighters who pursue a good cause in areas where soldiers are in short supply. A synonym for mercenary is "soldier of fortune," and this phrase sometimes glorifies the mercenary, turning the meaning of "fortune" from "cash" to "luck in battle."
◉柯林斯词典
1. [N-COUNT 可数名词](外籍)雇佣兵 A mercenary is a soldier who is paid to fight by a country or group that they do not belong to.
2. [ADJ-GRADED 能被表示程度的副词或介词词组修饰的形容词]唯利是图的；见钱眼开的 If you describe someone as mercenary, you are criticizing them because you think that they are only interested in the money that they can get from a particular person or situation. [disapproval]
