How did The Prince contribute to the meaning of the word Machiavellian?

The Prince (1532) contributed to the meaning of the word Machiavellian by presenting a political philosophy that shocked contemporary readers, leading them to associate the author’s name with the tactical use of cunning, duplicity, and bad faith in the pursuit of power.12

In the treatise, Niccolò Machiavelli argued that politics operates under its own rules, separate from traditional moral standards. He advised that a ruler must be prepared to act without regard for conventional morality—learning "how not to be good"—if "necessity" demands it to maintain the state. By suggesting that a prince should combine the strength of a lion with the cunning of a fox, and that deceit and ruthlessness are permissible tools for political survival, the work established a reputation for the author as a "teacher of evil".324

Consequently, the term Machiavellian evolved to characterize the view that politics is amoral, signifying behavior marked by the callous manipulation of others for self-interest rather than the greater good.15