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charity

/ˈtʃæɹɪti/ (Received-Pronunciation)/ˈt͡ʃɛɹəti/ (Canada, General-American)[ˈt͡ʃɛɹəɾi] (Canada, General-American)
  • noun
  • from Old French

An organization, the objective of which is to carry out a charitable purpose.

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1 All current definitions

Every sense of “charity” in current use, as recorded by Wiktionary. Older and obsolete senses are kept separately.

noun

  1. countableAn organization, the objective of which is to carry out a charitable purpose.

    The event raised money for local charities.

  2. countableThe goods or money given to those in need, or the act of doing it.
  3. uncountableBenevolence to the less fortunate; the providing of goods or money to those in need.

    act of charity

  4. countableuncountableIn general, an attitude of kindness and understanding towards others, now especially suggesting generosity.

    July 20, 1677, John Mitchell Mason, letter to a friend Judge thyself with the judgment of sincerity, and thou witl judge others with the judgment of charity.

  5. PhilippinesUScountableinformaluncountableA free throw.
Older & obsolete senses (1)
  1. archaiccountableuncountableChristian love; representing God's love of man, man's love of God, or man's love of his fellow-men.
Wiktionary: “charity” (via kaikki.org) — CC BY-SA 4.0
Cross-check: WordNet senses (5)
  1. nouna foundation created to promote the public good (not for assistance to any particular individuals)
  2. nouna kindly and lenient attitude toward people — also: brotherly love
  3. nounan activity or gift that benefits the public at large
  4. nounpinnate-leaved European perennial having bright blue or white flowers — also: Jacob's ladder, Greek valerian, Polemonium caeruleum, Polemonium van-bruntiae, Polymonium caeruleum van-bruntiae
  5. nounan institution set up to provide help to the needy
Princeton WordNet 3.0 — WordNet License

Synonyms: charitable organization

Wiktionary: “charity” (via kaikki.org) — CC BY-SA 4.0

2 History of the word

The etymology, the path the word travelled, and the words built from it.

The word’s journey, newest to oldest:

  1. English (today)charity
  2. Middle Englishcharite
  3. Old Frenchcharité
  4. Latincāritās

From Middle English charite, from Old French charité, cherte, chariteit, cariteit, from Latin cāritās.

* The Tyndale Bible uses native English love instead.

Wiktionary: “charity” (via kaikki.org) — CC BY-SA 4.0

Derivatives — words built from “charity”

anticharitycharideecharitariancharitylesscharitywarechugchuggerdischarityincharitymetacharitysharityuncharity

Phrases & compounds

charity begins at homecharity boxcharity boycharity casecharity girlcharity labelcharity muggercharity shopcharity stampcharity stripecold as charitykiss of charityprinciple of charityRoman charitySister of Charity
Wiktionary: “charity” (via kaikki.org) — CC BY-SA 4.0

Want to go deeper? See also “charity” on Etymonline ↗

3 Original language

Where “charity” came from before it was English.

Came into English from
Old French
Old French charité
Oldest written form
Latin
Latin cāritās
Wiktionary: “charity” (via kaikki.org) — CC BY-SA 4.0

4 Original meaning

What the word meant at the oldest point the record reaches.

Wiktionary’s etymology does not give a separate meaning for the earliest form of “charity”, so we don’t state one. The historical dictionary entry below shows how the word was understood in 1913.

Historical meaning — Webster’s 1913

A historical record, labelled as such: some of these senses are dated or have since shifted.

charity n. [F. charit fr. L. caritas dearness, high regard, love, from carus dear, costly, loved; asin to Skr. kam to wish, love, cf. Ir. cara a friend, W. caru to love. Cf. Caress.]

  1. Love; universal benevolence; good will.
  2. Liberality in judging of men and their actions; a disposition which inclines men to put the best construction on the words and actions of others.
  3. Liberality to the poor and the suffering, to benevolent institutions, or to worthy causes; generosity.
  4. Whatever is bestowed gratuitously on the needy or suffering for their relief; alms; any act of kindness.
Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913), public domain, via GCIDE

5 Use it with confidence

Model sentences from the sources, matched to the meaning they show. Read each one aloud, then make your own in the game.

nounMeaning: An organization, the objective of which is to carry out a charitable purpose.

The event raised money for local charities.

He donated half his earnings to charity.

nounMeaning: Benevolence to the less fortunate; the providing of goods or money to those in need.

act of charity

nounMeaning: In general, an attitude of kindness and understanding towards others, now especially suggesting generosity.

July 20, 1677, John Mitchell Mason, letter to a friend Judge thyself with the judgment of sincerity, and thou witl judge others with the judgment of charity.

You go fuck yourself. You think I'm in this for charity?1980, Paul Schrader, American Gigolo, spoken by Leon (Bill Duke):

Wiktionary: “charity” (via kaikki.org) — CC BY-SA 4.0

Three steps to owning it

  1. Pick one meaning above and read its model sentence out loud.
  2. Say who or what the word is about in your own life, then build a sentence around that.
  3. Check it against the definition: would a careful reader understand exactly that meaning?

6 The mastery game

Play it here, or print it and do it with pen and paper. At the end you will know the meanings, history, origin and original meaning — and you will have used the word yourself.

Step 1 of 9

Say it, then spell it

charity

/ˈtʃæɹɪti/

Say the word out loud three times, slowly. Notice the stressed syllable. When you are ready, hide it and spell it from memory.

Activate Words · Word-mastery worksheet · Name: ______________________ Date: __________

charity

/ˈtʃæɹɪti/ · noun

Step 1 — Say it and write it

Say “charity” out loud three times. Then cover the word and write it three times from memory.

Step 2 — Know every meaning

Read each definition. Then write it again in your own words.

1. (noun) An organization, the objective of which is to carry out a charitable purpose.
2. (noun) The goods or money given to those in need, or the act of doing it.
3. (noun) Benevolence to the less fortunate; the providing of goods or money to those in need.
4. (noun) In general, an attitude of kindness and understanding towards others, now especially suggesting generosity.
5. (noun) A free throw.

Step 3 — Which meaning is it?

“The event raised money for local charities.”

A. An organization, the objective of which is to carry out a charitable purpose.
B. The goods or money given to those in need, or the act of doing it.
C. In general, an attitude of kindness and understanding towards others, now especially suggesting generosity.

Circle the meaning used.

“act of charity”

A. Benevolence to the less fortunate; the providing of goods or money to those in need.
B. The goods or money given to those in need, or the act of doing it.
C. A free throw.

Circle the meaning used.

“July 20, 1677, John Mitchell Mason, letter to a friend Judge thyself with the judgment of sincerity, and thou witl judge others with the judgment of charity.”

A. In general, an attitude of kindness and understanding towards others, now especially suggesting generosity.
B. The goods or money given to those in need, or the act of doing it.
C. An organization, the objective of which is to carry out a charitable purpose.

Circle the meaning used.

Step 4 — History and origin

Which language did “charity” come into English from?   A. Latin  B. Middle Dutch  C. Old French  D. Late Latin

Write the word’s journey back in time (each language and form):

Write three words built from “charity” and what each means:

Step 5 — Original meaning

Read the etymology on the page. What does it tell you about the word’s earlier meaning?

How does that original meaning connect to the meanings today?

Step 6 — Use it yourself

Write a sentence using “charity” to mean: An organization, the objective of which is to carry out a charitable purpose.
Write a sentence using “charity” to mean: The goods or money given to those in need, or the act of doing it.
Write a sentence using “charity” to mean: Benevolence to the less fortunate; the providing of goods or money to those in need.

☐ I can explain its meanings   ☐ I know its history   ☐ I know its original language   ☐ I know its original meaning   ☐ I can use it confidently

Answer key — charity

Which meaning, sentence 1: A. An organization, the objective of which is to carry out a charitable purpose.

Which meaning, sentence 2: A. Benevolence to the less fortunate; the providing of goods or money to those in need.

Which meaning, sentence 3: A. In general, an attitude of kindness and understanding towards others, now especially suggesting generosity.

Origin: C. Old French (Old French charité)

Journey: English charity ← Middle English charite ← Old French charité ← Latin cāritās

Some derivatives: anticharity, charidee, charitarian, charityless, charityware, chug, chugger, discharity

Etymology: From Middle English charite, from Old French charité, cherte, chariteit, cariteit, from Latin cāritās.

Sources: Wiktionary “charity” (https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/charity#English), CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org; Princeton WordNet 3.0; Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913, public domain) via GCIDE. Worksheet from https://activatewords.com/w/charity