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subsidy

[suhb-si-dee]
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noun, plural sub·si·dies.
  1. a direct pecuniary aid furnished by a government to a private industrial undertaking, a charity organization, or the like.
  2. a sum paid, often in accordance with a treaty, by one government to another to secure some service in return.
  3. a grant or contribution of money.
  4. money formerly granted by the English Parliament to the crown for special needs.
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Origin of subsidy

1325–75; Middle English subsidie < Anglo-French < Latin subsidium auxiliary force, reserve, help, equivalent to sub- sub- + sid-, combining form of sedēre to sit1 + -ium -ium
Related formsan·ti·sub·si·dy, noun, plural an·ti·sub·si·dies.non·sub·si·dy, noun, plural non·sub·si·dies.

Synonyms

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1. Subsidy, subvention are both grants of money, especially governmental, to aid private undertakings. A subsidy is usually given to promote commercial enterprise: a subsidy to manufacturers during a war. A subvention is usually a grant to stimulate enterprises connected with science and the arts: a subvention to a research chemist by a major company.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for subsidy

Contemporary Examples

Historical Examples

  • The man who is honest in his dealings with his fellowman has a subsidy which money cannot buy.

    Dollars and Sense

    Col. Wm. C. Hunter

  • But they followed their old habits when the year had expired and the subsidy ceased.

  • On the 29th the crown debts were alleged as a reason for demanding a subsidy.

    The Reign of Mary Tudor

    W. Llewelyn Williams.

  • Prussia had agreed in the spring to accept an English subsidy.

    Lectures on the French Revolution

    John Emerich Edward Dalberg-Acton

  • It is ten years since I had a subsidy, in all which time I have been sparing to trouble you.

    Charles I

    Jacob Abbott

British Dictionary definitions for subsidy

subsidy

noun plural -dies
  1. a financial aid supplied by a government, as to industry, for reasons of public welfare, the balance of payments, etc
  2. English history a financial grant made originally for special purposes by Parliament to the Crown
  3. any monetary contribution, grant, or aid
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Word Origin

C14: from Anglo-Norman subsidie, from Latin subsidium assistance, from subsidēre to remain, from sub- down + sedēre to sit
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 subsidy

n.

late 14c., from Anglo-French subsidie, from Old French subside "help, aid, contribution," from Latin subsidium "help, aid, assistance, (military) reinforcements," from sub "behind, near" (see sub-) + sedere "to sit" (see sedentary).

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
subsidy in Culture

subsidy

A grant made by a government to some individual or business in order to maintain an acceptable standard of living or to stimulate economic growth.

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The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.