Adjacent Words

Generosity definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

GENEROS'ITY, n. [L. generositas, from genus, race, kind, with reference to birth, blood, family.]
1. The quality of being generous; liberality in principle; a disposition to give liberally or to bestow favors; a quality of the heart or mind opposed to meanness or parsimony.
2. Liberality in act; bounty.
3. Nobleness of soul; magnanimity. [This is the primary sense, but is now little used.]

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: the trait of being willing to give your money or time [syn: generosity, generousness] [ant: stinginess]
2: acting generously [syn: generosity, unselfishness]

Merriam Webster's

noun (plural -ties) Date: 1566 1. a. the quality or fact of being generous b. a generous act 2. abundance <great generosity of spirit>

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Generosity Gen`er*os"i*ty, n. [L. generositas: cf. F. g['e]n['e]rosit['e].] 1. Noble birth. [Obs.] --Harris (Voyages). 2. The quality of being noble; noble-mindedness. Generosity is in nothing more seen than in a candid estimation of other men's virtues and good qualities. --Barrow. 3. Liberality in giving; munificence. Syn: Magnanimity; liberality.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

If you refer to someone's generosity, you mean that they are generous, especially in doing or giving more than is usual or expected. There are stories about his generosity, the massive amounts of money he gave to charities. ...a man of great generosity of spirit. ? meanness

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

n. 1. Nobleness, disinterestedness, magnanimity, high-mindedness. 2. Liberality, bounty, bounteousness, bountifulness, charity, munificence.

Moby Thesaurus

BOMFOG, Benthamism, Christian charity, Christian love, abundance, affluence, agape, altruism, amiability, ample sufficiency, ampleness, amplitude, avalanche, beneficence, benevolence, benevolent disposition, benevolentness, bigheartedness, bigness, bonanza, bonhomie, bounteousness, bountifulness, bountiousness, bounty, brotherly love, bumper crop, caritas, charitableness, charity, chivalrousness, chivalry, copiousness, cordiality, do-goodism, easy purse strings, elevation, errantry, exaltation, extravagance, exuberance, fertility, flood, flow, flower power, foison, free hand, freedom, freehandedness, freeheartedness, freeness, friendliness, full measure, fullness, generousness, geniality, giving, givingness, goodwill, grace, graciousness, great abundance, great heart, great plenty, greatheartedness, greatness, greatness of heart, gush, heartiness, heroism, high-mindedness, hospitableness, hospitality, humanitarianism, idealism, knight-errantry, knightliness, landslide, largeheartedness, largeness, largess, lavishness, liberality, liberalness, loftiness, lots, love, love of mankind, luxuriance, magnanimity, magnanimousness, maximum, more than enough, much, munificence, myriad, myriads, neighborliness, nobility, noble-mindedness, nobleness, numerousness, open door, open hand, open heart, openhandedness, openheartedness, opulence, opulency, outpouring, overflow, philanthropism, philanthropy, plenitude, plenteousness, plentifulness, plenty, prevalence, princeliness, prodigality, productiveness, profuseness, profusion, quantities, receptiveness, repleteness, repletion, rich harvest, rich vein, richness, riot, riotousness, scads, shower, spate, stream, sublimity, substantiality, substantialness, superabundance, teemingness, unselfishness, utilitarianism, warmheartedness, warmness, warmth, wealth, welcome, welfarism, well-disposedness