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definitions

endow

[en-dou]
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SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR endow ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used with object)

to provide with a permanent fund or source of income: to endow a college.
to furnish, as with some talent, faculty, or quality; equip: Nature has endowed her with great ability.
Obsolete. to provide with a dower.

verb (used without object)

(of a life-insurance policy) to become payable; yield its conditions.

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RELATED WORDS

subsidize, enable, enrich, empower, bestow, enhance, donate, organize, supply, contribute, back, subscribe, bequeath, sponsor, establish, endue, will, grant, provide, support

Origin of endow

1350–1400; Middle English endowen < Old French endouer, equivalent to en- en-1 + douer < Latin dōtāre to dower, equivalent to dōt- (stem of dōs) dowry + -āre infinitive suffix
Related formsen·dow·er, nounre·en·dow, verb (used with object)su·per·en·dow, verb (used with object)un·en·dowed, adjectiveun·en·dow·ing, adjectivewell-en·dowed, adjective

Synonyms for endow

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR endow ON THESAURUS.COM
2. invest, clothe, endue.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for endow

Contemporary Examples of endow

Historical Examples of endow

  • Youth is prone to endow its opinions with all the dignity of certain knowledge.

    The Spenders

    Harry Leon Wilson

  • What was lacking in his power that he could not endow them with life?

    His Masterpiece

    Emile Zola

  • Small beginnings of the fortune that was to found and endow asylums!

    Hidden Hand

    Emma Dorothy Eliza Nevitte Southworth

  • What he did was to endow the church with this admirable piece of head-gear.

    The Gypsies

    Charles G. Leland

  • But He will endow her with all His wealth, and raise her to sit with Him on a throne forever.

    The Wedding Ring

    T. De Witt Talmage

British Dictionary definitions for endow

endow

verb (tr)

to provide with or bequeath a source of permanent income
(usually foll by with) to provide (with qualities, characteristics, etc)
obsolete to provide with a dower
Derived Formsendower, noun

Word Origin for endow

C14: from Old French endouer, from en- 1 + douer, from Latin dōtāre, from dōs dowry
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 endow
v.

late 14c., indowen "provide an income for," from Anglo-French endover, from en- "in" + Old French douer "endow," from Latin dotare "bestow" (see dowry). Related: Endowed; endowing.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper