noun
lust for money; money-grubbing; avarice
Literary or formal term for an excessive desire for money, often with a negative moral connotation. Not an everyday word; more common in written or elevated contexts.
彼の行動には銅臭が感じられる。
His actions reek of avarice.
銅臭にまみれた政治家を批判する。
Criticize politicians tainted by the lust for money.
From Chinese 銅臭 (tóngxiù), literally 'copper smell', figuratively the stench of money. The exact historical derivation is uncertain; the spelling is conventionally associated with the meaning of avarice.