Definition of benevolent
1a : marked by or disposed to doing good a benevolent donorb : organized for the purpose of doing good a benevolent society
2 : marked by or suggestive of goodwill benevolent smiles
benevolently
adverbbenevolentness
nounFrom the M-W Editors
benevolent was our Word of the Day on 06/11/2012. Hear the podcast!
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Examples of benevolent in a Sentence
Trees that size are like whales, sort of benevolent in their huge bulk … —Sebastian Junger, This Old House, March/April 1998
Grandfather sometimes turned on us like a rigged trap, and of course the benevolent gaze of the sage became the glare of the patriarch. —Darryl Pinckney, High Cotton, 1992
They tore out the windows of the club's simple storefront and bricked them over and left two much smaller windows … so that the look of the club changed from that of a benevolent neighborhood organization to that of a paramilitary one. —“The Talk of the Town”, New Yorker26 Feb. 1990
A Southern writer is allowed his eccentricities. The prevailing attitude is a kind of benevolent neglect. —Walker Percy, “Why I Live Where I Live,” 1980, in Signposts in a Strange Land, 1991
a gift from a benevolent donor
He belonged to several benevolent societies and charitable organizations.
Recent Examples of benevolent from the Web
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Because Beyoncé is a kind and benevolent queen, on Friday, she's blessed the world with a single, perfect image of the world's most famous twins, Sir and Rumi Carter on their one month birthday.
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Benevolent billionaires were vilified for connections to Wall Street during the election.
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Keck said in an Interview with IndyStar that Chart is driven by a benevolent mission to help and empower people who otherwise could never achieve home ownership.
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In the climactic slow-motion shot of the ponytailed businessman riding a motorcycle, DeJoria looks like the most benevolent Hells Angel you’ll ever hope to meet.
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The benevolent Bad Gal herself replied to @WaladShami's DM with some very wise words of wisdom about losing love and finding it again.
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Kevin forgives quickly and believes that the universe is benevolent.
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The longtime US focus on its most-troubled neighbors is partly benevolent, partly self-interested.
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Their home is a glittering seaside stronghold of benevolent values and beautiful female freedom and strength — with a real focus on physical strength.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'benevolent.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
benevolent Has a Good History
Someone who is "benevolent" genuinely wishes other people well, which is not surprising if you know the word's history. "Benevolent" can be traced back to Latin bene, meaning "good," and velle, meaning "to wish." Other descendants of "velle" in English include "volition" ("the act or power of making one's choices or decisions"), "voluntary," and the rare word velleity (meaning either "the lowest degree of volition" or "a slight wish or tendency"). There is also one more familiar "velle" descendant - "malevolent," the antonym of "benevolent," a word describing one who is disposed to doing ill instead of good.
Origin and Etymology of benevolent
Middle English, from Latin benevolent-, benevolens, from bene + volent-, volens, present participle of velle to wish — more at will
BENEVOLENT Defined for English Language Learners
benevolent
playDefinition of benevolent for English Language Learners
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: kind and generous
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: organized to do good things for other people
BENEVOLENT Defined for Kids
Learn More about benevolent
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See words that rhyme with benevolent Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for benevolent Spanish Central: Translation of benevolent Nglish: Translation of benevolent for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of benevolent for Arabic speakers
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