cronyism
noun
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"Forsake not an old friend; for the new is not comparable to him" (Ecclesiasticus 9:10). Practitioners of cronyism would probably agree. The word cronyism evolved in the 19th century as a spin-off of crony, meaning "friend" or "pal." Crony originated in England in the 17th century, perhaps as a play on the Greek word chronios, meaning "long-lasting," from chronos, meaning "time." Nineteenth-century cronyism was simply friendship, or the ability to make friends. The word didn't turn bad until the next century, when Americans starting using cronyism to refer to the act of playing political favorites.
Examples of cronyism in a Sentence
Luke McGee, CNN, 20 June 2024
This cronyism is affecting consumer choice and marketplace fairness in our state while jeopardizing millions of dollars of tax revenue at the same time — the same tax revenue that motivated the state Legislature to legalize fantasy sports in the first place.
—Dennis C. Vacco, New York Daily News, 8 May 2024
Don’t think armband insignias, tanks in the streets, and martial law; think lawfare, sophisticated cronyism, surveillance, and counter-majoritarian restrictions on reproductive rights and voting access and academic freedom.
—Andrew Marantz, The New Yorker, 27 Mar. 2024
Following a Delaware court’s decision to block Musk’s compensation package based on the evidence that the Tesla board was engaging in cronyism, WSJ is back with another banger connecting those board members to Musk.
—Bradley Brownell / Jalopnik, Quartz, 5 Feb. 2024
See all Example Sentences for cronyism 
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'cronyism.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Cronyism.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cronyism. Accessed 4 Jul. 2024.
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