magnanimity

American  

[mag-nuh-nim-i-tee] / ˌmæg nəˈnɪm ɪ ti /

noun

plural

magnanimities

1. the quality of being magnanimous.

2. a magnanimous act.

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magnanimity British  

/ ˌmæɡnəˈnɪmɪtɪ /

noun

1. generosity

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Etymology

Origin of magnanimity

1300–50; Middle English magnanimite < Latin magnanimitās. See magnanimous, -ity

Explanation

Magnanimous behavior is noble, generous, or unselfish, and to exhibit magnanimity is to be this way. He showed great magnanimity in not pressing charges when I drove his car into the pond. "Accidents happen my friend," he said, and patted me on the back. In Latin, magnus means "great": a magnate is a great man; a magnum is a great big bottle of champagne. Magnanimity is the generous greatness of spirit. When you are being the bigger person, you are behaving with magnanimity. "The supermodel grabbed the magnum of champagne, lifted it to her mouth and drained the bottle. With great magnanimity, her host smiled and offered her another."

Example Sentences

His first published book, in 1978, with the late Wilbur Sanders, to whom this novel is dedicated, was “Shakespeare’s Magnanimity: Four Tragic Heroes, Their Friends and Families.”

From Washington Post • Jan. 28, 2016

Magnanimity, winsomeness and grace aren’t antithetical to conservatism.

From New York Times • Jan. 14, 2015

Magnanimity "was not a word I use in connection with the Falklands," she told a television interviewer at midweek.

From Time Magazine Archive

Missing from the flags and bunting that decorated Peking's vast, Red-built Magnanimity Hall were the customary huge portraits of the party leader.

From Time Magazine Archive

But such expectations were obviously too much for such a duplicitous character as Hamilton, who lacked “the Spirit to Maintain or the Magnanimity to retract” his own words.

From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis