charitable

[char-i-tuh-buhl]

adjective

1. generous in donations or gifts to relieve the needs of indigent, ill, or helpless people, or of animals.

   a charitable man giving much money to feed people experiencing food insecurity.

   Synonyms: benevolent, bountiful, liberal, beneficent
   Antonyms: selfish

2. kindly or lenient in judging people, acts, etc..

   charitable in his opinions of others.

   Synonyms: mild, considerate, broad-minded, merciful, lenient
   Antonyms: intolerant, severe

3. relating to or concerned with charity.

   a charitable institution.

charitable

/ ˈtʃærɪtəbəl /

adjective

1. generous in giving to the needy

2. kind or lenient in one's attitude towards others

3. concerned with or involving charity

Other Word Forms

• charitableness noun
• charitably adverb
• noncharitable adjective
• noncharitableness noun
• noncharitably adverb
• overcharitable adjective
• overcharitableness noun
• overcharitably adverb
• pseudocharitable adjective
• pseudocharitably adverb
• quasi-charitable adjective
• quasi-charitably adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of charitable¹

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English, from Old French, equivalent to charit(e) charity + -able -able

Synonym Study

See generous.

Example Sentences

“Wealth-manager advice delves deeply into estate taxes, income taxes, generational planning/trusts, and charitable planning in addition to traditional investment planning,” says the Cooke Financial Group.

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That can be helpful for taxpayers who don’t itemize charitable deductions.

Read more on Barron's

If you’re feeling charitable — and you certainly have the means to become a philanthropist — you can always make large tax-deductible contributions, advisers are quick to note, or even establish a foundation.

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For people who also give to charity, properly making qualified charitable distributions can lower their tax bill even further, and timing can matter.

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Buffett on Berkshire: Despite accelerating his charitable giving to his children’s foundations, Buffett wrote his upbeat outlook for Berkshire hasn’t changed.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• considerate 
• forgiving 
• gracious 
• magnanimous 
• thoughtful 
• tolerant