also: たんらん
Strong, often literary term for excessive desire for wealth or gain. Can be used as a noun or adjectival noun (e.g., 貪婪な).
I am astonished by his avaricious desires.
That politician indulged in every kind of greed.
Standard kanji spelling; the reading どんらん is more common than たんらん.
Alternate reading; less common than どんらん.
The kanji 貪 means 'covet' or 'greed', and 婪 also means 'greed' or 'avarice'. The compound is a classical Chinese-derived word emphasizing intense greed. The exact historical derivation is uncertain.