endow
Americanverb
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to provide with or bequeath a source of permanent income
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(usually foll by with) to provide (with qualities, characteristics, etc)
-
obsolete to provide with a dower
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of endow
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English endowen, from Old French endouer, equivalent to en- en- 1 + douer, from Latin dōtāre “to dower,” equivalent to dōt- (stem of dōs ) “dowry” + -āre infinitive suffix
Explanation
To endow is to furnish, but not with furniture. If you've been endowed with something, it means you've been given a gift — most likely a gift that can't be returned or exchanged, like a sense of humor or athletic ability or trust. We usually use endow to refer to an ability or a quality, but you can endow someone with money, too. Endow is related to the word dowry, which is a gift that a man — or sometimes a woman — receives from his or her fiancé’s family before the wedding. The practice of giving dowries has fallen out of fashion in most Western countries, but there are still many parts of the world where it's common for the bride's family to provide the groom with an endowment of land and livestock.
Vocabulary lists containing endow
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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.
Endow the scholarships, or buildings, or rooms, etc. with their names.
From New York Times • Apr. 23, 2016
Robin Endow Las Vegas My husband claims one of Erma's columns can undo what I have learned in six months of Heloise.
From Time Magazine Archive
Endow us with the sympathy that rejoices with them who are rejoicing and that weeps with them that weep.
From The Whole Armour of God by Jowett, John Henry
Oh, hear me: Oh, goddess wise That lovest light Endow with sight Their unillumin'd eyes.
From The Complete Plays of Gilbert and Sullivan by Gilbert, W. S. (William Schwenck), Sir
They prayed: "Endow them with continence and fruitfulness, and vouchsafe that their hearts may rejoice looking upon their sons and daughters."
From Anna Karenina by Garnett, Constance
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.
