tithe

[tahyth]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR tithe ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

Sometimes tithes. the tenth part of agricultural produce or personal income set apart as an offering to God or for works of mercy, or the same amount regarded as an obligation or tax for the support of the church, priesthood, or the like.

any tax, levy, or the like, especially of one-tenth.

a tenth part or any indefinitely small part of anything.

verb (used with object), tithed, tith·ing.

to give or pay a tithe or tenth of (produce, money, etc.).

to give or pay tithes on (crops, income, etc.).

to exact a tithe from (a person, community, parish, etc.).

to levy a tithe on (crops, income, etc.).

verb (used without object), tithed, tith·ing.

to give or pay a tithe.

Also British, tythe.

Origin of tithe

before 900; (noun) Middle English ti(ghe)the, Old English teogotha tenth; (v.) Middle English tithen, Old English teogothian to take the tenth of, derivative of the noun

Related formstithe·less, adjectiveun·tithed, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for tithe

duty, levy, fine, price, rate, cost, contribution, expense, tariff, assess, impose, enact, excise, obligation, salvage, bite, custom, tribute, toll, impost

Examples from the Web for tithe

Contemporary Examples of tithe

They volunteer at shelters and tithe their earnings—not nearly enough.
Some Catholic Leaders Speaking Out Against Paul Ryan’s Budget-Cutting
Lauren Ashburn
August 20, 2012
He left because he no longer could afford to tithe to the church, and was thus deemed “unworthy.”
Warren Jeffs' Flock in Denial
Carol McKinley
August 5, 2011
“Much of its wealth comes from the fervent devotion of members, who tithe faithfully,” wrote Jenkins.
The Man Who Made God His ATM
Michelle Goldberg
December 19, 2009

Historical Examples of tithe

But we cannot enumerate a tithe of the masterpieces of the British Encyclopædia.
Leading Articles on Various Subjects
Hugh Miller
But the parson knows Juan, and proceeds to examine his tithe.
The Little Manx Nation - 1891
Hall Caine
Surely, no more than he found—nay, not a tithe of that he found.
The Wild Geese
Stanley John Weyman
In all his life the adventurer had never been possessed of a tithe of this amount.
A Romance of the West Indies
Eugne Sue
Yet it was barely a tithe of the sudden burden he had to bear.
VC -- A Chronicle of Castle Barfield and of the Crimea
David Christie Murray

British Dictionary definitions for tithe

tithe

noun

(often plural) Christianity a tenth part of agricultural or other produce, personal income, or profits, contributed either voluntarily or as a tax for the support of the church or clergy or for charitable purposes

any levy, esp of one tenth

a tenth or very small part of anything

verb

(tr)

to exact or demand a tithe or tithes from (an individual or group)
to levy a tithe upon (a crop or amount of produce, etc)

(intr) to pay a tithe or tithes

Derived Formstither, noun

Word Origin for tithe

Old English teogoth; related to Old Frisian tegotha, Old Saxon tegotho, Old High German zehando, Old Norse tīundi, Gothic taihunda

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 tithe

Old English teogoþa (Anglian), teoþa (West Saxon) "tenth," from Proto-Germanic *tegunthon, *tekhunthon. Retained in ecclesiastical sense while the form was replaced in ordinal use by tenth (influenced by ten).

Old English teoþian, from the root of tithe (n.). Related: Tithed; tithing.

tithe in Culture

tithe

A tenth part of one's annual income contributed to support the clergy or a church. The Mosaic law required the Israelites to pay a tithe for the support of worship.