philanthropy

[ fi-lan-thruh-pee ]

noun

, plural phi·lan·thro·pies.

1. altruistic concern for human welfare and advancement, usually manifested by donations of money, property, or work to needy persons, by endowment of institutions of learning and hospitals, and by generosity to other socially useful purposes.
2. the activity of donating to such persons or purposes in this way:

   to devote one's later years to philanthropy.

3. a particular act, form, or instance of this activity:

   The art museum was their favorite philanthropy.

4. an organization devoted to helping needy persons or to other socially useful purposes.

philanthropy

/ ˈfɪlənˌθrəʊp; fɪˈlænθrəpɪ /

noun

1. the practice of performing charitable or benevolent actions
2. love of mankind in general

Derived Forms

• phiˈlanthropist, noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of philanthropy¹

First recorded in 1600–10; earlier philanthropia, from Late Latin, from Greek philanthrōpía “benevolence, humane feeling”; phil-, anthropo-, -y ³

Word History and Origins

Origin of philanthropy¹

C17: from Late Latin philanthrōpia, from Greek: love of mankind, from philos loving + anthrōpos man

Example Sentences

The Haas family has a long tradition of philanthropy.

From Los Angeles Times

That year, according to the Chronicle of Philanthropy, contributions to liberal nonprofits increased 155 percent over the year before—far more than when George W. Bush won in 2004, when donations increased by 40.5 percent.

From Slate

"It's more about impact philanthropy, collaboration, convening, and helping people. And I'm also going to throw empathy in there as well, because I really care about what I do. It helps impacts people's lives. And I think we could do with some more empathetic leadership around the world."

From BBC

Some of these choice programs rely at least in part for funding on donations offset by tax credits or philanthropy rather than a direct state subsidy.

From Los Angeles Times

The headlines tolling doom have cast a shadow over the work of millions of dedicated mathematicians, entrepreneurs, engineers, artists, ecologists and community advocates and repelled onlookers, creating a profound missed opportunity to reshape philanthropy.

From Salon

Related Words

• charity
• generosity