Standard Lemma guide

Machiavelli

name · noun · 3 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • CMU ARPABET: M AA2 K IY0 AH0 V EH1 L IY0 Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
  • CMU ARPABET 2: M AA2 K Y AH0 V EH1 L IY0 Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

name

Meaning 1

Niccolò Machiavelli (1469-1527), Italian statesman and writer, whose work The Prince (1532) advises that acquiring and exercising power may require unethical methods.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

Someone like Niccolò Machiavelli: a Machiavellian person

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

noun

Meaning 3

a statesman of Florence who advocated a strong central government (1469-1527)

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: Niccolo Machiavelli

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: philosopher, statesman, solon, national leader

History

Etymology

Probably from Italian mal- + chiavello, in which the second component is a diminutive of chiavo (“nail”). The name is attested in a Late Latin document in the form Malclavelli.

Across languages

Translations

9 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Armenian: Մաքիավելի (Makʻiaveli) — Italian statesman and writer
  • Armenian: Մակիավելլի (Makiavelli) — Italian statesman and writer
  • Bulgarian: Макиаве́ли (Makiavéli) — Italian statesman and writer
  • Chinese Mandarin: 馬基雅維利 /马基雅维利 (Mǎjīyǎwéilì) — Italian statesman and writer
  • Chinese Mandarin: 馬基雅弗利 /马基雅弗利 (Mǎjīyǎfúlì) — Italian statesman and writer
  • Chinese Mandarin: 馬基維利 /马基维利 — Italian statesman and writer
  • French: Machiavel — Italian statesman and writer
  • Italian: Machiavelli — Italian statesman and writer
  • Russian: Макиаве́лли (Makiavélli) — Italian statesman and writer