## Meanings
1. Kindness or forgiveness shown to someone you have the power to punish or harm.
2. A willingness to forgive or be kind rather than cruel.
3. A lucky thing that you are grateful for.

## Examples
- The king showed mercy and let the prisoners go free.
- Mercy is one of her many good qualities.
- It was a mercy that no one was hurt in the crash.

## Derived Forms
- bemercy
- god-a-mercy
- laws-a-mercy
- merciful
- mercify
- merciless
- merciness
- mercy-killing
- nonmercy
- unmercied
- unmercy

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: mercy
- Root: merci
- Root: mercēs

## Etymology
From Middle English mercy, merci, from Anglo-Norman merci (compare continental Old French merci, mercit), from Latin mercēs (“wages, fee, price”), from merx (“wares, merchandise”). Displaced native Old English mildheortnes (literally "mildheartedness"). Cognate with French merci, whence the doublet merci.

## AI Etymology
Mercy comes from Middle English mercy, merci, from Anglo-Norman merci (compare continental Old French merci, mercit), from Latin mercēs (“wages, fee, price”), from merx (“wares, merchandise”). Displaced native Old English mildheortnes (literally "mildheartedness"). Cognate with French merci, whence the doublet merci. In present-day English its meanings include kindness or forgiveness shown to someone you have the power to punish or harm, a willingness to forgive or be kind rather than cruel, and a lucky thing that you are grateful for. The historical chain runs through mercy (Middle English), merci (Anglo-Norman), and mercēs (Latin). Related and derived forms include bemercy, god-a-mercy, and laws-a-mercy.

## Topics
- Describing People

markdown

mercy

Meanings

Thesaurus

Common collocations

Etymology

Topics

External links

Keyboard Shortcuts

General

Send feedback