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
Those diplomatic efforts to aid Congo were not simply motivated by altruism.
—
Nicolas Niarchos, Vanity Fair, 20 Feb. 2026
The evening featured a panel on preventative care moderated by TIME executive editor Nikhil Kumar and ended with a round of toasts from three honorees, who spoke about the importance of long-term funding for health, reinterpreting the story around aging, and altruism to help those in medical need.
—Charlotte Hu, Time, 20 Feb. 2026
Feeding people is more than simple altruism.
—Sean Timberlake, Sacbee.com, 13 Feb. 2026
Bankman-Fried was later imprisoned for fraud, and Anthropic’s leadership began to pretend that effective altruism did not exist.
—Gideon Lewis-Kraus, New Yorker, 9 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for altruism
Nicolas Niarchos, Vanity Fair, 20 Feb. 2026
The evening featured a panel on preventative care moderated by TIME executive editor Nikhil Kumar and ended with a round of toasts from three honorees, who spoke about the importance of long-term funding for health, reinterpreting the story around aging, and altruism to help those in medical need.
—Charlotte Hu, Time, 20 Feb. 2026
Feeding people is more than simple altruism.
—Sean Timberlake, Sacbee.com, 13 Feb. 2026
Bankman-Fried was later imprisoned for fraud, and Anthropic’s leadership began to pretend that effective altruism did not exist.
—Gideon Lewis-Kraus, New Yorker, 9 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for altruism
Recent Examples of Synonyms for altruism
Noun
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Some respondents urged generosity regardless of the service model.—
Ryan Brennan
March 12,
Kansas City Star,
12 Mar. 2026
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Some respondents framed it as a moral question, arguing generosity should be the default regardless of service level.—
Ryan Brennan,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
12 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Millions more Americans will likely donate to nonprofits after changes in tax laws passed by Congress last summer, but those changes will also likely reduce the overall amount of money given to charity, according to new research.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
18 Mar. 2026
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Whatever the legal arguments, nothing is stopping all supervisors from giving their extra salary to charity (as Chaffee and Sarmiento announced following public blowback) and rescinding the raises for future board members.—
The Editorial Board,
Oc Register,
18 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Legacy of philanthropy and creativity Shepard founded The KIS Foundation in 2006 to raise awareness for sickle cell disease, which predominantly impacts people of color.—
Noelle Lilley,
CBS News,
19 Mar. 2026
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The program is also supported by corporate philanthropy from Wells Fargo, JPMorgan Chase, Visa, Gap and others.—
Roger Vincent,
Los Angeles Times,
16 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Altruism.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/altruism. Accessed 21 Mar. 2026.
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