mendicancy
Americannoun
-
the practice of begging, as for alms.
-
the state or condition of being a beggar.
Other Word Forms
- nonmendicancy noun
Etymology
Origin of mendicancy
First recorded in 1780–90; mendic(ant) + -ancy
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Rhee's truculence is echoed by many Koreans, and for understandable reasons: without the power resources, the fertilizer factories and the iron mines of North Korea, the republic is doomed to economic mendicancy.
From Time Magazine Archive
One should equally avoid the appearance of mendicancy and that of prosperity . . . don't wait to be invited to ride . . . walk on the wrong side of the road.
From Time Magazine Archive
Disillusioned with "the perishable world," he suddenly renounces his princely surroundings for a life of famished mendicancy.
From Time Magazine Archive
On the other hand, there is no habitually criminal class in Greece, such as exists in the large centres of civilization, and professional mendicancy is still rare.
From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 12, Slice 4 "Grasshopper" to "Greek Language" by Various
To stand with a lifted hat and solicit a hearing savors of mendicancy and an humble spirit.
From Rosemary and Rue by Amber
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
