CRONY
What does "CRONY" mean?
A close friend or companion, especially one who gains unfair advantage through the connection.
Meanings
- A close companion or longtime friend, often with a hint of clannish favoritism. He handed every contract to his cronies from the old neighborhood.
Did you know?
- 'Crony' was student slang at Cambridge in the 1600s, most likely from Greek 'khronos' (time) - a crony was literally your 'long-time' friend before the word soured into the language of corruption.
Word origin
Recorded as 17th-century Cambridge University slang, probably from Greek 'khronios' (long-lasting), from 'khronos' (time) - hence an old, long-time friend.
Remember it
A CRONY shares time with you - hear 'chron-' (as in chronology) hiding inside, the Greek for time.
A little poem
Greek named the long-time friend a thing of years;
the centuries turned the gift to nods and sneers.
couplet
Wordplay
- The mayor said he hired only the best people. Turns out 'best' was Greek for 'people I went to school with'.
What it teaches
Loyalty pointed inward becomes a wall: the same closeness that warms a friendship can rot a system.
Quick facts
What does CRONY mean?
A close friend or companion, especially one who gains unfair advantage through the connection.
Is CRONY a valid word?
Yes — CRONY is one of the answer words in Wordul, the daily word game.
How many letters is CRONY?
CRONY has 5 letters and 2 syllables.
Where does CRONY come from?
Recorded as 17th-century Cambridge University slang, probably from Greek 'khronios' (long-lasting), from 'khronos' (time) - hence an old, long-time friend.
What can CRONY teach us?
Loyalty pointed inward becomes a wall: the same closeness that warms a friendship can rot a system.
How players do
Be the first to solve it.