Realpolitik
Etymology
A German compound of real, "realistic" or "practical," and Politik, "politics," coined by the writer Ludwig von Rochau in his 1853 book Grundsätze der Realpolitik. Rochau meant it partly as a critique of idealists who ignored how power really operates. It became associated with Bismarck’s statecraft and, in the twentieth century, with figures like Henry Kissinger, and now labels any hard-nosed, interest-first approach to politics or negotiation.
noun · /ray-AHL-poh-lee-teek/
Politics conducted on the basis of practical power and interest rather than moral or ideological principle.
What it names
The cold-eyed mode of decision-making that asks not what is right but what will actually work given the balance of power.
Example
Endorsing a rival she despised was pure realpolitik — the only path to the votes she needed for the bill.
Related idea
Machiavellian describes a personal willingness to deceive and manipulate; realpolitik is a broader doctrine about basing statecraft on interests and power rather than ideals.