charitable

adjective

char·​i·​ta·​ble ˈcher-ə-tə-bəl 

ˈcha-rə-

1

: full of love for and goodwill toward others : benevolent

2

a

: liberal in benefactions to the needy : generous

b

: of or relating to charity

charitable institutions

3

: merciful or kind in judging others : lenient

charitableness noun

charitably

ˈcher-ə-tə-blē 

ˈcha-rə-

adverb

Synonyms

• philanthropic
• humanitarian
• philanthropical
• benevolent

Examples of charitable in a Sentence

She makes a charitable donation every year.

He performs charitable work to help the poor.

They give money to charitable causes.

She has tried to be charitable about her sister's problems.

Half of the class has a chance at passing the test, and that is a charitable estimate.

Recent Examples on the Web

The investigation went public in July after federal prosecutors empaneled a grand jury and issued subpoenas to several nonprofits and the Department of Economic and Community Development, the principal state conduit for delivering taxpayer money to charitable organizations. —Edmund H. Mahony, Hartford Courant, 17 Aug. 2025

Jim waits 45 minutes after sending a trade alert before buying or selling a stock in his charitable trust’s portfolio. —Kevin Stankiewicz, CNBC, 17 Aug. 2025

After Players’ Weekend concludes, select items will be auctioned off to benefit a charitable organization of the player’s choosing. —Hailey Roden, The Enquirer, 16 Aug. 2025

Meanwhile, about a dozen homeless residents in Washington packed up their belongings with help from volunteers from charitable groups and staffers from some city agencies. —Ashraf Khalil, Chicago Tribune, 15 Aug. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing charitable

• charitable gift

Rhymes for charitable

• uncharitable

Kids Definition

charitable

adjective

char·​i·​ta·​ble ˈchar-ət-ə-bəl 

1

: freely giving money or help to poor and needy persons : generous

2

: given for the needy : of service to the needy

charitable funds

a charitable institution

3

: kindly in judging other people

charitableness noun

charitably

-blē 

adverb

Legal Definition

charitable

adjective

char·​i·​ta·​ble

: of or relating to charity

charitable contributions