noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of benefactor
1425–75; late Middle English benefactour < Late Latin; see bene-, factor
Explanation
Every school, museum, and struggling artist is in search for a generous benefactor, or someone to provide the financial means to keep everything running smoothly. The Latin roots of benefactor are bene, which means "well," and facere, which means "to do" — literally, "to do well." A benefactor does well by supporting (usually financially) a person or a good cause. In the old days, a struggling artist or actor might have been supported by a wealthy benefactor. Now, many struggling artists and actors have to rely on waiting tables and other odd jobs instead.
Vocabulary lists containing benefactor
Take the Bad with the Good: Bene and Mal
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Giving Words
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Make Do: Fac
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
So Amazon MGM Studios became the surprising benefactor, offering Guadagnino a $40 million budget—the same amount of cash it spent to acquire Melania—along with a 2027 release date.
From Slate ● Jul. 2, 2026
“He’s presenting himself as her benefactor, not just her business partner,” explained Cialdini.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 30, 2026
Let’s say your benefactor bought the house for $500,000, and the house was worth $1.5 million when you inherited it.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 24, 2026
The jury noted that it is often a wealthy benefactor or nonprofit that generates that money, and for years the Los Angeles Zoo believed it had that in GLAZA.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 16, 2026
He does just that, becoming a wealthy benefactor of the impoverished, a generous and kind man beyond compare.
From "A Deadly Wandering: A Mystery, a Landmark Investigation, and the Astonishing Science of Attention in the Digital Age" by Matt Richtel
The announcement "will include a series of measures to make political funding more transparent, including restrictions on donations from foreign-based benefactors", the paper says.
From BBC ● Jul. 5, 2026
Supported by unnamed donors, he offers encouragement and religious-based morale boosts to politicians or their mutual benefactors.
From Salon ● Jun. 9, 2026
“I think the market is saying these financial companies are going to be the biggest benefactors of AI,” with margin and operational efficiency improvements, he said.
From MarketWatch ● Mar. 4, 2026
India may be one of the greatest benefactors of the new global trading order.
From Barron's ● Feb. 18, 2026
I felt ashamed to appear before my benefactors so clad.
From "Jane Eyre" by Charlotte Brontë
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
