1
as in compassionate
having or marked by sympathy and consideration for others
a benevolent willingness to provide veterinary services to low-income families at greatly reduced prices
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in charitable
having or showing a concern for the welfare of others
a benevolent businessman who has donated money and time to helping inner-city youths
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of benevolent
One benevolent man took out his phone and pulled up the CBS app to stream the show on the smallest of screen as tens of people watched over his shoulder.
—
Rebecca Rubin, Variety, 9 June 2025
We Christians are sometimes tempted to consider the commitment to love our neighbor in sentimental ways, as a warm feeling in the heart, but nothing more binding than benevolent feelings toward another.
—Rick Fry, San Diego Union-Tribune, 3 June 2025
Erwitt, who died in 2023, at 95, was known for his photographs of benevolent irony.
—Air Mail, 31 May 2025
Elsewhere, organised crime still has its tendrils in many parts of the sport across the globe, and the misty-eyed reverence for benevolent local tycoons is a notion that went extinct before the Tasmanian tiger.
—Jacob Whitehead, New York Times, 2 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for benevolent
Rebecca Rubin, Variety, 9 June 2025
We Christians are sometimes tempted to consider the commitment to love our neighbor in sentimental ways, as a warm feeling in the heart, but nothing more binding than benevolent feelings toward another.
—Rick Fry, San Diego Union-Tribune, 3 June 2025
Erwitt, who died in 2023, at 95, was known for his photographs of benevolent irony.
—Air Mail, 31 May 2025
Elsewhere, organised crime still has its tendrils in many parts of the sport across the globe, and the misty-eyed reverence for benevolent local tycoons is a notion that went extinct before the Tasmanian tiger.
—Jacob Whitehead, New York Times, 2 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for benevolent
Recent Examples of Synonyms for benevolent
Adjective
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This, for me, is a viable and compassionate way of supporting your people — those, like Griselda best said, who are the ones consuming your music and buying your concert ticket.—
Sigal Ratner-Arias,
Billboard,
20 June 2025
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Through his characters, Fellowes communicates his approval for a more compassionate and inclusive upper crust.—
Judy Berman,
Time,
20 June 2025
Adjective
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Jim waits 45 minutes after sending a trade alert before buying or selling a stock in his charitable trust's portfolio.—
Zev Fima,
CNBC,
20 June 2025
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Global health issues in the spotlight This photography competition, which was last held in 2021, is organised by Wellcome, a charitable foundation that supports health research around the world.—
Eva Amsen,
Forbes.com,
19 June 2025
Adjective
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Despite the criticism, Tonn remains grateful for the support the video has brought to the dog's case, and the majority of kind comments.—
Melissa Fleur Afshar,
MSNBC Newsweek,
25 June 2025
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Much like his character, Boyce is mild-mannered, kind and effortlessly funny.—
Chicago Tribune,
Chicago Tribune,
25 June 2025
Adjective
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Art Environments The Kohler Foundation is the philanthropic arm of the Kohler Co., a global manufacturing giant headquartered in Kohler, WI.—
Chadd Scott,
Forbes.com,
7 June 2025
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For estate planners, CPAs, and financial advisors, the key takeaway is that tax tools should serve philanthropic intent, not drive it.—
Matthew F. Erskine,
Forbes.com,
8 May 2025
Adjective
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Iran’s missile strike against a U.S. military base in Qatar was met with near-unanimous rebuke in the Middle East, including from sympathetic powers such as Oman.—
Brady Knox,
The Washington Examiner,
23 June 2025
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Trump and his cabinet members have repeatedly characterized Khalil’s advocacy as antisemitic and as being sympathetic to Hamas, which the U.S. designates as a terrorist organization.—
Molly Crane-Newman,
New York Daily News,
20 June 2025
Adjective
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In Pip Adam’s extraordinary, humane book Audition, the stars are both a dystopian place and a site of uncharted possibility.—
Robert Rubsam,
The Atlantic,
21 June 2025
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After relying on his instincts, Cloudy was among the cats captured and brought to the shelter for care, the humane society wrote in a Facebook post.—
Simone Jasper,
Charlotte Observer,
18 June 2025
Adjective
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Others like Bill Gates, Laurene Powell Jobs, and Guy Fieri aren’t being so generous with their offspring.—
Ani Freedman,
Fortune,
20 June 2025
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Cho, as the perceptive and generous Jin, distracted from his own family troubles by the sudden flashes of Casey’s bright light, is wise and rejuvenated; disinterested admiration makes this man, who looks to be in his forties, nearly a teen-ager again.—
Richard Brody,
New Yorker,
20 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Benevolent.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/benevolent. Accessed 3 Jul. 2025.
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