Philanthropy Meaning

/fɪˈlæn.θɹə.pi/
C1

Definition, CEFR level C1, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.

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nounBenevolent altruism with the intention of increasing the well-being of humankind.

nounCharitable giving, charity.

Philanthropy is the highest virtue.
Zoroastrians value education and philanthropy.
The billionaire dedicated his later years to charity and philanthropy.
CEFR Practice Quiz
The act of giving money to support education and health is called ____.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
Her commitment to ____ led her to establish a foundation that supports underprivileged children.

Borrowed from Late Latin philanthrōpia, itself a borrowing from Ancient Greek φιλανθρωπία (philanthrōpía). By surface analysis, phil- + -anthropy.

"Secondly, Another excellent Diſpoſition in Chriſt, is his Love, not only his Phylanthropy, or good Will he bears to all men, and the Deſire he hath of their Salvation, Ezek[iel] 33. 11." — 1681, Bartholomew Ashwood, “Chap. IX. Opening somewhat of the Sweet Dispositions of Christ, viz. His Goodness, Love, and the Riches thereof, as to the Kind, Fruits, and Effects of It.”, in The Best Treasure, or, The Way to be Truly Rich. Being a Discourse on Ephes[ians] 3. 8. Wherein is Opened and Commended to Saints and Sinners the Personal and Purchased Riches of Christ, as the Best Treasure, to be Pursu'd, and Endur'd by All that Would Be Happy here and hereafter, London: Printed for William Marshal, at the Bible in Newgate-Street, at the corner of Ivy Lane, →OCLC, page 139:
"[T]he spirit of the Gospel has given to many of its enlightened disciples, the impulse of such a philanthropy as carries abroad their wishes and their endeavours to the very outskirts of human population—philanthropy, of which, if you asked the extent or the boundary of its field, we should answer, in the language of inspiration, that 'the field is the world;' a philanthropy which overlooks all the distinctions of cast and of colour, and spreads its ample regards over the whole brotherhood of the species; a philanthropy which attaches itself to man in the general; […]" — 1817, Ingram Cobbin, “Additional Notes”, in Philanthropy, a Poem: With Miscellaneous Pieces, London: Printed for James Black and Son, Tavistock-Street, Covent-Garden, →OCLC, pages 305–306:
"The philanthropy needed, which shall be ever ready to toil, and possessed of an untiring patience equal to perpetual contest with difficulty, is a philanthropy which looks beyond the outward, and is moved by something more durable than mere sensibility or sympathy for physical distress. It is a philanthropy which, underneath rags and filth, shrouded by the darkness of ignorance, oppressed and stifled by the warfare of passion, can catch glimpses of the immortal spirit." — 1840 January 26, Thomas B[ayley] Fox, “Christianity the Basis of True Philanthropy.” A Discourse, Delivered at the Fourth Anniversary of the Warren Street Chapel, January 26, 1840, Boston, Mass.: Printed by Tuttle, Dennett & Chisholm, →OCLC, page 8:
"Because an individual should have been an habitual drunkard, however thoroughly and soundly he may have reformed, yet according to this doctrine, he is forever totally debarred the privilege of rising to the level, in a moral view, of that individual who has never been drunk; this is, indeed, holding out a weak incentive for such reformations. This is not the language of true Phylanthropy; this is not the doctrine of Christianity; in the sight of the Saviour, the prostrate, self abased, self condemned publican, was accepted rather than the haughty, self righteous Pharisee […]" — 1843, Phinehas Price, “From the Upland Union. Temperance.”, in A Narrative of the Life and Travels, Preaching & Suffering, with an Account of the Witnesses, Defence and Persecution of Phinehas Price, M.D. from 1789 up to 1843, Philadelphia, Pa.: [s.n.], →OCLC, pages 125–126:
"Doing philanthropy involves acts as diverse as consoling or cavorting with a child who has cancer, taking tickets at an art exhibit, writing a check for a relief agency, investing in the endowment of a private liberal arts college, and raising the funds that make the endowment possible." — 2008, Robert L. Payton, Michael P. Moody, “Introduction: Why This Book?”, in Understanding Philanthropy: Its Meaning and Mission (Philanthropy and Nonprofit Studies), Bloomington, Ind.: Indiana University Press, →ISBN, page 4:

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CEFR Practice Quiz
The act of giving money to support education and health is called ____.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
Her commitment to ____ led her to establish a foundation that supports underprivileged children.

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