nonprofit

American  

[non-prof-it] / nɒnˈprɒf ɪt /

adjective

1. not established for the purpose of making a profit; not entered into for money.

   a nonprofit institution.

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noun

• nonprofits
  plural

1. a nonprofit organization, institution, corporation, or other entity.

nonprofit British  

/ nɒnˈprɒfɪt /

adjective

1. another word for non-profit-making

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noun

1. an organization that is not intended to make a profit

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• nonprofits
  plural

Etymology

Origin of nonprofit

First recorded in 1900–05; non- + profit

Compare meaning

How does nonprofit compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• nonprofit vs. not-for-profit
• for-profit vs. nonprofit

Explanation

A business or organization is nonprofit if its main purpose isn't making money for its owners. Nonprofit companies usually raise money for charities. You can use the word nonprofit as an adjective or a noun — a nonprofit is an organization that benefits some public good, rather than raising revenue for stockholders or owners. There are educational nonprofits, religious nonprofits, public health nonprofits, and many others. The word's been around since the 1920s, combining non, or "not," with profit, from the Latin root profectus, "advance, increase, success, or progress."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

nonprofit nonprofits

The environmental nonprofit Surfrider Foundation also filed a lawsuit against the Federal Aviation Administration, alleging that the FAA failed to properly assess the Boca Chica facility’s environmental impact on the local ecosystem.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 17, 2026

She launched a nonprofit group to channel humanitarian aid to soldiers.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 15, 2026

“Those concerns are playing out in real time, with far-reaching consequences,” said Dax Goldstein, a director at the States United Democracy Center, a nonprofit group that works to build confidence in elections.

From Salon ● Aug. 15, 2026

On Thursday afternoon, Shadow glided into the nest with KD1 not far behind, according to Friends of Big Bear Valley, a nonprofit that runs the livestream.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 14, 2026

The Fugees Family, the nonprofit organization Coach Luma started to support her programs, bought eighteen acres of property just outside Clarkston that will someday serve as the home to the Fugees school and soccer teams.

From "Outcasts United: An American Town, a Refugee Team, and One Woman's Quest to Make a Difference" by Warren St. John

Child-care nonprofits are taking advantage of declining enrollment at TK-12 schools to turn vacant classrooms and even closed campuses into child-care hubs, expanding scarce infant and toddler slots.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 17, 2026

Code Pink is purportedly funded by Neville Roy Singham, a Shanghai-based financier who has directed hundreds of millions of dollars into a global network of nonprofits.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 13, 2026

Moore is among a number of people who have set up nonprofits and other groups to sway public opinion, and the big man’s opinion, in innovative ways.

From Slate ● Aug. 6, 2026

Experts say the vast majority of nonprofits cap the amount of vacation time an employee can accrue, most often to one-and-a-half times the vacation hours allotted to them for a single year.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 6, 2026

We both served on the boards of several nonprofits, and as much as he’d been stung by his defeat in the congressional primary, Barack still had ideas about trying for a higher office.

From "Becoming" by Michelle Obama

Related Words

• unsuccessful
• worthless