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contribute

[kuhn-trib-yoot]
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verb (used with object), con·trib·ut·ed, con·trib·ut·ing.
  1. to give (money, time, knowledge, assistance, etc.) to a common supply, fund, etc., as for charitable purposes.
  2. to furnish (an original written work, drawing, etc.) for publication: to contribute stories to a magazine.
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verb (used without object), con·trib·ut·ed, con·trib·ut·ing.
  1. to give (money, food, etc.) to a common supply, fund, etc.: He contributes to many charities.
  2. to furnish works for publication: He contributed to many magazines.
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Idioms
  1. contribute to, to be an important factor in; help to cause: A sudden downpour contributed to the traffic jam.
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Origin of contribute

1520–30; < Latin contribūtus past participle of contribuēre to bring together. See con-, tribute
Related formscon·trib·ut·a·ble, adjectivecon·trib·u·tive, adjectivecon·trib·u·tive·ly, adverbcon·trib·u·tive·ness, nounnon·con·trib·ut·a·ble, adjectivenon·con·trib·ut·ing, adjectivenon·con·trib·u·tive, adjectivenon·con·trib·u·tive·ly, adverbnon·con·trib·u·tive·ness, nouno·ver·con·trib·ute, verb, o·ver·con·trib·ut·ed, o·ver·con·trib·ut·ing.pre·con·trib·ute, verb (used with object), pre·con·trib·ut·ed, pre·con·trib·ut·ing.pre·con·trib·u·tive, adjectiveun·con·trib·ut·ed, adjectiveun·con·trib·ut·ing, adjectiveun·con·trib·u·tive, adjectiveun·con·trib·u·tive·ly, adverbun·con·trib·u·tive·ness, noun

Synonyms

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1. provide, furnish, donate.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words

conducivecontributoryrelatedresponsiblecontributing

Examples from the Web for contributive

Historical Examples

  • It would be foolish to ignore the contributive force of this sense.

    Modern Religious Cults and Movements

    Gaius Glenn Atkins

  • Henry James proposed, in each instance, to disclose "the contributive value of the accessory facts in a given artistic case."

  • Description also, in the most artistic fiction, is used only as subsidiary and contributive to narration.

  • But it is in narrative and in description that the quality of style is most contributive to the maximum effect.

  • The contributive part of French in the new vocabulary corresponds to the branches of activity reserved to the new-comers.

British Dictionary definitions for contributive

contribute

verb (often foll by to)
  1. to give (support, money, etc) for a common purpose or fund
  2. to supply (ideas, opinions, etc) as part of a debate or discussion
  3. (intr) to be partly instrumental (in) or responsible (for)drink contributed to the accident
  4. to write (articles) for a publication
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Derived Formscontributable, adjectivecontributive, adjectivecontributively, adverbcontributiveness, noun

Word Origin

C16: from Latin contribuere to collect, from tribuere to grant, bestow
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for contributive

contribute

v.

1520s, from Latin contributus, past participle of contribuere "to bring together, add, unite, collect, contribute" (see contribution). Figurative sense is from 1630s. Related: Contributed; contributing.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper