crony

[ kroh-nee ]

noun

, plural cro·nies.

1. a close friend or companion; chum.

   Synonyms: buddy, pal

crony

/ ˈkrəʊnɪ /

noun

1. a friend or companion

Word History and Origins

Origin of crony¹

1655–65; alleged to be university slang; perhaps < Greek chrónios for a long time, long-continued, derivative of chrónos time; chrono-

Word History and Origins

Origin of crony¹

C17: student slang (Cambridge), from Greek khronios of long duration, from khronos time

Example Sentences

Much of the money went in kickbacks to cronies and Marcos Sr.

From Time

You need to multiply the crime that Sergei discovered by 1,000 to begin to appreciate how much has been stolen by Putin and his cronies.

From Time

Although touted as reforms, the disputed laws were seen by protesters as Modi’s sacrifice of the interests of ordinary farmers for the benefit his capitalist cronies.

From Time

History is littered with cities that took on either general debt or project debt to build something, and that money then ended up in the pockets of mayors and alderman and unions and cronies.

From Time

Cohen and his cronies always make sure that it’s socially acceptable to laugh at his American targets.

From Washington Post

Democrats need to respond aggressively to the crony capitalism practiced by many Republicans, particularly regarding Wall Street.

From The Daily Beast

Barack Obama has shown America that crony corporatism, patronage politics, and limitless government know no party.

From The Daily Beast

Call it the new class, the crony class, the ruling class, or the lobbyist-industrial complex.

From The Daily Beast

Unions exist because, without them, the path is opened wide to crony collaboration between big government and big business.

From The Daily Beast

In 2012, he voted to reauthorize the Export-Import Bank, one of the purest excresences of crony capitalism imaginable.

From The Daily Beast

"God bless me, crony; we ought to do these fine things and yet stay Catholics," cried the jeweller.

From Project Gutenberg

He had known something of the Erringtons for many years, having been a crony of old Maxfield's once upon a time.

From Project Gutenberg

I think every family should have a dog; it is like having a perpetual baby; it is the plaything and crony of the whole house.

From Project Gutenberg

It is something that happened to—Tom Wyld, an old crony of mine out on the other side.

From Project Gutenberg

But I take it that it is more likely to be some crony of the landladys.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• accomplice
• acquaintance
• associate
• buddy
• chum
• colleague
• comrade
• confidant

More About Crony

What does crony mean?

A crony is a close friend or associate, especially one among several.

Crony can be used in a neutral way meaning much the same thing as buddy or pal, as in I still get together with my college cronies. 

But the word is most often used in a negative way to refer to a lackey or an accomplice in some kind of shady or illegal activity.

It’s especially used in a political context to refer to friends or associates of people in power who are appointed to positions or otherwise shown favor due to their relationship with that person, rather than for their qualifications, as in He ran for office to enrich himself and his cronies. When used this way, it implies a criticism of such people.

The term cronyism refers to the practice of appointing and otherwise favoring people in this way.

Example: Several of the company’s executives were known to be cronies of the CEO, making them unpopular with many employees. 

Where does crony come from?

The first records of the word crony come from around 1660. It’s origin isn’t known for sure, but it’s thought to come from university slang—its early recorded uses refer to school buddies. One possible origin could be the Greek chrónios, which means “for a long time” and is derived from the Greek chrónos, “time.” This makes sense since a crony is often a person you’ve known for a long time.

When a politician or public official appoints their longtime associates to positions, these people are often referred to as their cronies, especially in accusations of cronyism. (The practice of appointing family members to positions is called nepotism.)

Even when cronies is used outside of politics, it’s still often negative. In pop culture, the word is often used to refer to criminal associates (even if they’re not considered close associates or buddies). For example, the disposable henchmen sent on evil errands by fictional supervillains are occasionally referred to as their cronies.

Did you know ... ?

What are some other forms related to crony?

• cronies (plural)

What are some synonyms for crony?

• buddy
• pal
• associate
• chum
• comrade
• friend

What are some words that share a root or word element with crony? 

• cronyism

What are some words that often get used in discussing crony?

• politics
• government
• favoritism
• appoint
• position
• corruption
• relationship
• friendship
• lackey

How is crony used in real life?

The word crony is especially used in a critical way in the context of politics. There is rarely only one crony—the word is usually used in the plural.

Our thoughts and prayers are with Wayne LaPierre and his cronies at the NRA, who have long put their own self-interests ahead of public safety in order to line their pockets and enrich themselves. https://t.co/DVUqJju5N2

— Moms Demand Action (@MomsDemand) August 6, 2020

Erdogan loves Turkey's justice system when it works for his favor, he turns against it when it starts going after his cronies. #Turkey

— The Big Pharaoh (@TheBigPharaoh) December 27, 2013

The 70% car tariffs thingy is nothing but an attempt to get a few cronies rich at the expense of the majority. Absurd economics

— JJ. Omojuwa (@Omojuwa) December 28, 2013

 

 

Try using crony!

Which of the following kinds of people is the word crony most likely to refer to?

A. family member
B. enemy
C. accomplice
D. opponent