definitions

sponsor

[ spon-ser ]
/ ˈspɒn sər /
||
SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR sponsor ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a person who vouches or is responsible for a person or thing.
a person, firm, organization, etc., that finances and buys the time to broadcast a radio or television program so as to advertise a product, a political party, etc.
a person who makes a pledge or promise on behalf of another.
a person who answers for an infant at baptism, making the required professions and assuming responsibility for the child's religious upbringing; godfather or godmother.

verb (used with object)

to act as sponsor for; promise, vouch, or answer for.

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RELATED WORDS

benefactor, patron, advocate, promoter, backer, underwriter, supporter, subsidize, finance, back, fund, bankroll, guarantee, mainstay, angel, guarantor, surety, sustainer, godparent, stake

Nearby words

spongy degeneration, spongy parenchyma, spongy substance, sponsion, sponson, sponsor, sponsored, spontaneity, spontaneous, spontaneous abortion, spontaneous amputation

Origin of sponsor

1645–55; < Latin spōnsor guarantor, equivalent to spond(ēre) to pledge + -tor -tor, with dt > s

Related forms

spon·so·ri·al [spon-sawr-ee-uhl, -sohr-] /spɒnˈsɔr i əl, -ˈsoʊr-/, adjectivespon·sor·ship, nounun·spon·sored, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for sponsor

British Dictionary definitions for sponsor

sponsor

/ (ˈspɒnsə) /

noun

(a person or group that provides funds for an activity, esp)
  1. a commercial organization that pays all or part of the cost of putting on a concert, sporting event, etc
  2. a person who donates money to a charity when the person requesting the donation has performed a specified activity as part of an organized fund-raising effort
mainly US and Canadian a person or business firm that pays the costs of a radio or television programme in return for advertising time
a legislator who presents and supports a bill, motion, etc
Also called: godparent
  1. an authorized witness who makes the required promises on behalf of a person to be baptized and thereafter assumes responsibility for his Christian upbringing
  2. a person who presents a candidate for confirmation
mainly US a person who undertakes responsibility for the actions, statements, obligations, etc, of another, as during a period of apprenticeship; guarantor

verb

(tr) to act as a sponsor for

Derived Forms

sponsorial (spɒnˈsɔːrɪəl), adjectivesponsorship, noun

Word Origin for sponsor

C17: from Latin, from spondēre to promise solemnly
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