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
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 
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“Cronyism.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cronyism. Accessed 29 May. 2024.
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