mendicancy

[ men-di-kuhn-see ]

/ ˈmɛn dɪ kən si /

SEE SYNONYMS FOR mendicancy ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

the practice of begging, as for alms.

the state or condition of being a beggar.

Origin of mendicancy

First recorded in 1780–90; mendic(ant) + -ancy

OTHER WORDS FROM mendicancy

non·men·di·can·cy, noun

Words nearby mendicancy

Mendelssohn, Felix, mender, Menderes, Mendes, Mendès-France, mendicancy, mendicant, mendicity, mending, Mendips, Mendocino

Example sentences from the Web for mendicancy

Mendicancy is a profession, and it is not exercised only by extending the hand and whining for alms.
Old and New Paris, v. 2|Henry Sutherland Edwards
Some of them are trained professional beggars, versed in every trick and dodge of the trade of mendicancy.
The Alien Invasion|William Henry Wilkins
How could disorderly living of this sort lead to anything but mendicancy?
The Surprises of Life|Georges Clemenceau
It was easy, however, to decree the extinction of mendicancy.
Old and New Paris, v. 2|Henry Sutherland Edwards

Mendicancy, preaching, hearing confessions, and teaching publicly were the capital sins that consigned the Friars to reprobation.
Saint Bonaventure|Rev. Fr. Laurence Costelloe, O.F.M.