charity

B1 Topic:People & Society

US /ˈt͡ʃɛɹəti/ UK /ˈtʃæɹɪti/ See IPA manual

Freq #2892

Meanings

1

noun
An organization that helps people in need.

She gives money to a children's charity every month.
2

noun
The act of giving money or help to those in need.

They collected food and clothes for charity.
3

noun
A kind and understanding attitude towards other people.

He judged their mistakes with charity.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

3 noun · a kind and understanding... brotherly love

Word family

Forms charities

Derived forms anticharitycharideecharitariancharitylesscharitywarechugchuggerdischarityincharitymetacharitysharityuncharity

Appears in

Phrases (1)

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public charity
a charity supported mainly by donations from the wider public

Adjective + noun

Proverbs (1)

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Charity begins at home

Simplified etymology

Charity ultimately derives from Latin carus, “dear,” through caritas, “dearness” or “love.” In the 12th century it could mean Christian love for other people, and its modern association with aid to the needy developed from that sense.

Etymology

From charity in the Biblical sense of Christian love; first used by Puritans. In early Christian tradition, Faith, Hope and Charity were the martyred daughters of Saint Sophia. The names, taken from 1 Corinthians 13:13 ("And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity") have been translated and used in many languages. The name of the sura (chapter) is one of several translations of the original Arabic.

Topics

People & Society

External links

# charity

**Type:** Word
**Level:** B1
**Part of speech:** noun
**IPA (US):** /ˈt͡ʃɛɹəti/
**IPA (UK):** /ˈtʃæɹɪti/
**Frequency rank:** 2892

## Meanings
1. An organization that helps people in need.
2. The act of giving money or help to those in need.
3. A kind and understanding attitude towards other people.

## Examples
- She gives money to a children's charity every month.
- They collected food and clothes for charity.
- He judged their mistakes with charity.

## Derived Forms
- anticharity
- charidee
- charitarian
- charityless
- charityware
- chug
- chugger
- discharity
- incharity
- metacharity
- sharity
- uncharity

## Etymology
From charity in the Biblical sense of Christian love; first used by Puritans. In early Christian tradition, Faith, Hope and Charity were the martyred daughters of Saint Sophia. The names, taken from 1 Corinthians 13:13 ("And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity") have been translated and used in many languages. The name of the sura (chapter) is one of several translations of the original Arabic.

## AI Etymology
charity is a noun and name. It is from charity in the Biblical sense of Christian love; first used by Puritans. In early Christian tradition, Faith, Hope and Charity were names taken from 1 Corinthians 13:13 and translated or used in many languages. Current senses include an organization that helps people in need, the act of giving money or help to those in need, and a kind and understanding attitude towards other people. Derived forms include anticharity, charidee, charitarian, charityless, and charityware.

## Topics
- People & Society

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