lucre
/ˈluːkə
/noun [mass noun]
Money, especially when regarded as sordid or distasteful or gained in a dishonourable way: officials getting their hands grubby with filthy lucre...
- Cheap points, and, possibly, some mitigating box office lucre, can be gained by criticizing an American audience overseas in Europe.
- But at least most of us don't have to earn our lucre by taking bribes at refugee centres and metro police roadblocks.
- They came here for lucre, they left when the money ran out.
Synonyms
money, cash, hard cash, ready money, funds, capital, finances, riches, wealth, spoils, ill-gotten gains, Mammon;
profit, profits, gain, proceeds, winnings
informal dough, bread, loot, the ready, readies, moolah
British informal dosh, brass, lolly, spondulicks, wonga, ackers
archaic pelf
Origin
Late Middle English: from French lucre or Latin lucrum; the phrase filthy lucre is with biblical allusion to Tit. 1:11.