PoliticsAugust 27, 2026

expediency

ik-SPEE-dee-en-see

Definition

The quality of being convenient, practical, or advantageous, often at the expense of moral or long-term considerations.

Etymology

Derived from the Latin 'expedire,' meaning to free or disentangle. It evolved to describe an action taken for the sake of convenience or immediate advantage.

In the news

The article uses the word to describe how civilian professors were initially brought to West Point for practical convenience rather than purely educational goals. It highlights the friction between this past utility and current political efforts to remove them.

West Point climate professor says he was fired for refusing to ‘defy science’

Read the full article ↗

The Seattle Times

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