Machiavelli

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Machiavelli

Where it comes from

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.

proper noun

Niccolò Machiavelli (1469-1527), Italian statesman and writer, whose work The Prince (1532) advises that acquiring and exercising power may require unethical methods. As Mannheim observed, this idea goes back beyond Marx; the hypocrisy of moral ideals, religious beliefs, and philosophical doctrines was pointed out by Machiavelli, and between Marx and Mannheim we can find similar ideas in Nietzsche and Sorel.

noun Machiavellis

Someone like Niccolò Machiavelli: a Machiavellian person

Translations

Every language

name Italian statesman and writer

中文	馬基雅維利 /马基雅维利 Mǎjīyǎwéilì, 馬基雅弗利 /马基雅弗利 Mǎjīyǎfúlì
Français	Machiavel
Italiano	Machiavelli
Русский	Макиаве́лли Makiavélli

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MLA

"Machiavelli." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/machiavelli. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

Machiavelli. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/machiavelli

Chicago

"Machiavelli." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/machiavelli.

BibTeX

@misc{machiavelli_2026,
  title = {Machiavelli},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/machiavelli},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}