as in generosity
feelings and behavior that show a desire to help other people and a lack of selfishness
charitable acts motivated purely by altruism In one final act of altruism, she donated almost all of her money to the hospital.
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Recent Examples of altruism
Trump has thus ended—or at least paused—the U.S. policy of strategic altruism.
—
Milan Vaishnav, Foreign Affairs, 16 July 2025
Equally, a business driven by altruism alone is unlikely to make enough money to survive for long.
—Steve Denning, Forbes.com, 16 July 2025
Effective altruism, which developed from ideas put forth by the philosopher Peter Singer in the early 1970s, argues that well-off people and societies are morally obligated to combat poverty, even far from home.
—Matthew Purdy, New York Times, 29 May 2025
Back in the day, the USDA helped pay for screwworm eradication down to Panama out of not pure altruism but economic pragmatism: Establishing a 100-mile screwworm barrier there is cheaper than creating one at the 2,000-mile U.S.-Mexico border.
—Sarah Zhang, The Atlantic, 27 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for altruism
Milan Vaishnav, Foreign Affairs, 16 July 2025
Equally, a business driven by altruism alone is unlikely to make enough money to survive for long.
—Steve Denning, Forbes.com, 16 July 2025
Effective altruism, which developed from ideas put forth by the philosopher Peter Singer in the early 1970s, argues that well-off people and societies are morally obligated to combat poverty, even far from home.
—Matthew Purdy, New York Times, 29 May 2025
Back in the day, the USDA helped pay for screwworm eradication down to Panama out of not pure altruism but economic pragmatism: Establishing a 100-mile screwworm barrier there is cheaper than creating one at the 2,000-mile U.S.-Mexico border.
—Sarah Zhang, The Atlantic, 27 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for altruism
Recent Examples of Synonyms for altruism
Noun
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Though his interests were that of a pretty typical child — computing and gaming, playing the saxophone, enjoying soccer and time with his pets — he was also known for his acts of kindness and generosity.—
Lauren Costantino
September 6,
Miami Herald,
6 Sep. 2025
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But this in charity affects people’s generosity.—
Jason Phillips,
USA Today,
5 Sep. 2025
Noun
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The buyer of the tickets will be able to contribute to one or both of Murphy's charities.—
Scott Talley,
Freep.com,
2 Sep. 2025
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The northern Mediterranean throws a good charity gala.—
Guy Martin,
Forbes.com,
2 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Dan and Jennifer Gilbert have been powerful forces in metro Detroit philanthropy, including through their Gilbert Family Foundation.—
JC Reindl,
Freep.com,
5 Sep. 2025
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Education and health care have been the biggest recipients of billionaire philanthropy over the past decades.—
Andrew Edgecliffe-Johnson,
semafor.com,
5 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Altruism.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/altruism. Accessed 9 Sep. 2025.
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