munificent

1 of 2

adjective

mu·​nif·​i·​cent myu̇-ˈni-fə-sənt 

1

: very liberal in giving or bestowing (see bestow sense 4) : lavish

munificent donors

2

: characterized by great liberality or generosity

a munificent gift

munificence

myu̇-ˈni-fə-sən(t)s 

noun

munificently adverb

munificence

2 of 2

noun

mu·​nif·​i·​cence myüˈnifəsən(t)s 

myəˈ-, 

÷məˈ-

plural -s

: the quality or state of being munificent : a giving or bestowing with extraordinary liberality : lavish generosity

the munificence of princes made possible the painting and sculpture of the Renaissance

—Curt Stern

Did you know?

Munificent was formed back in the late 1500s when English speakers, perhaps inspired by similar words such as magnificent, altered the ending of munificence. Munificence in turn comes from munificus, the Latin word for "generous," which itself comes from munus, a Latin noun that is variously translated as "gift," "duty," or "service." Munus has done a fine service to English by giving us other terms related to service or compensation, including municipal and remunerate.

Synonyms of munificent

Adjective

• generous
• charitable

Choose the Right Synonym for munificent

liberal, generous, bountiful, munificent mean giving or given freely and unstintingly.

liberal suggests openhandedness in the giver and largeness in the thing or amount given.

a teacher liberal with her praise

generous stresses warmhearted readiness to give more than size or importance of the gift.

a generous offer of help

bountiful suggests lavish, unremitting giving or providing.

children spoiled by bountiful presents

munificent suggests a scale of giving appropriate to lords or princes.

a munificent foundation grant

Examples of munificent in a Sentence

Adjective

a munificent host who has presided over many charitable events at his mansion

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

The munificent monetary prize of a million dollars will go a long way to help establish the show’s importance. — Khushbu Shah, Bon Appetit Magazine, 30 Oct. 2025

Swift danced her way through 149 sets in 22 countries and thanked her crew with munificent bonuses totaling $197 million. — Bryan West, USA TODAY, 18 Mar. 2025

The white middle class absconded to the suburbs in droves, seriously depleting a once munificent tax base. — Evan Kindley, The New Republic, 1 Aug. 2023

Testing these munificent vehicles took us not only to DaimlerChrysler's proving grounds but also to our beloved collection of paved curves, whoop-de-dos, and foot-to-the-floor straightaways in southeastern Ohio's Hocking Hills. — Don Schroeder, Car and Driver, 3 Jan. 2023

Carla had no plausible explanation as to why Gianni should have been so munificent. — Cullen Murphy, The Atlantic, 7 Nov. 2022

More significantly, Rolling Stone wrote a critical piece about country singer Morgan Wallen, reminiscent of Washington Post reporter David Fahrenthold’s Pulitzer-winning investigations of Donald Trump’s claims of his munificent charitable donations. — Washington Post, 17 Oct. 2021

It’s become popular—even knee-jerk—to write off the difficulty businesses face finding workers as people staying at home, probably sitting around in their underwear, enjoying the munificent benefits unemployment brings. — Erik Sherman, Forbes, 30 Sep. 2021

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

back-formation from munificence, from Latin munificentia, from munificus generous, from munus service, gift — more at mean

Noun

Middle French, from Latin munificentia, from munificus generous (from munus service, gift + -ficus -fic) + -entia -ence

First Known Use

Adjective

1565, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for munificent

• magnificent

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Kids Definition

munificent

adjective

mu·​nif·​i·​cent myu̇-ˈnif-ə-sənt 

1

: very generous in giving

a munificent host

2

: given generously or in plenty

a munificent gift

munificently adverb