crowdfunding
Americannoun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of crowdfunding
Explanation
Crowdfunding is raising money online for a business or project. Most successful crowdfunding ventures get donations from a large number of people. If you've always wanted to open a bookstore but don't have the money to buy books and rent a space, you could try crowdfunding. Online platforms allow would-be entrepreneurs to describe their business ideas and invite people to donate. Crowdfunding is used to raise money for art projects, travel, and medical expenses that aren't covered by insurance. The term dates from around 2010, coined from crowd, "large group of people," and fund, "supply with money."
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.
A crowdfunding page set up to cover funeral and memorial expenses, the search for Vazquez’s dog Coco, medical and other costs offered some heartbreaking details.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 1, 2026
The trial is just the latest in a long line of controversies to blight the once-revered abode, which is currently owned by developer Steven “Bo” Belmont, CEO of “real estate crowdfunding firm” Belwood Investments.
From MarketWatch • Mar. 3, 2026
About 200,000 people put money into the in-house crowdfunding scheme, which launched in 2009 and offered discounts and other perks.
From BBC • Feb. 27, 2026
Some small-scale, independent news sites founded in the past five years have built audiences via a crowdfunding model, though they still face political and financial pressures.
From Barron's • Feb. 11, 2026
But his family saw the stress the payments were causing him and set up a crowdfunding page, where they raised roughly $25,000 to cover the rest of his payments.
From BBC • Feb. 5, 2026
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.
