rapacity
Americannoun
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the quality of being rapacious, or given to seizing things for plunder.
That the monastery was raided six times, and burned 26 times in between, shows the rapacity of the Vikings.
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extreme greediness; predatory quality or character.
People blamed the higher prices on the rapacity of businesses.
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(of animals) the fact or characteristic of subsisting by the capture of living prey.
The early settlers of America suffered from the severity of the climate and the rapacity of wolves.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of rapacity
First recorded in 1490–1500, from Latin rapācitās, equivalent to rapāci- (stem of rapāx “greedy”; see rapacious ( def. )) + -tās -ty 2 ( def. )
Vocabulary lists containing rapacity
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.
Perhaps my cynicism about Mr. Witkoff’s curious mix of ingenuousness and rapacity is unfair.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 1, 2025
But we had no illusion that Ricca, et al., would actually restrain their rapacity.
From Washington Times ● Dec. 25, 2020
Zuckerberg’s motto, “Move fast and break things”, was generally treated as a sign of youthful insouciance, not of galling rapacity.
From The Guardian ● Feb. 7, 2020
Maybe greed, rapacity and ruthlessness constitute a "philosophy" for some people.
From New York Times ● May 21, 2016
With Great-Bridge fallen, nothing stood between their town and the rapacity of the enemy.
From "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume II: The Kingdom on the Waves" by M.T. Anderson
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.
