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
And its acknowledged leader, the United States, was a remarkably benevolent hegemon.
—
Stacie E. Goddard, Foreign Affairs, 28 July 2025
New York’s benevolent liberalism of the Rockefeller years comes off as top-down benevolence, sociological benevolence, experience-free benevolence.
—Richard Brody, New Yorker, 23 Apr. 2025
Good starters are made up of the unique mix of benevolent dictator (someone has got to keep things moving), a maestro (there are a million different things at play; the starter gets them all to hopefully harmonize) and friend.
—Moira McCarthy, Boston Herald, 10 July 2025
The act was sealed in a pronouncement by Princess Isabel, who became a President Lincoln-like figure in Brazil, known to many as the benevolent white liberator of the enslaved.
—Time, 17 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for benevolent
Stacie E. Goddard, Foreign Affairs, 28 July 2025
New York’s benevolent liberalism of the Rockefeller years comes off as top-down benevolence, sociological benevolence, experience-free benevolence.
—Richard Brody, New Yorker, 23 Apr. 2025
Good starters are made up of the unique mix of benevolent dictator (someone has got to keep things moving), a maestro (there are a million different things at play; the starter gets them all to hopefully harmonize) and friend.
—Moira McCarthy, Boston Herald, 10 July 2025
The act was sealed in a pronouncement by Princess Isabel, who became a President Lincoln-like figure in Brazil, known to many as the benevolent white liberator of the enslaved.
—Time, 17 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for benevolent
Recent Examples of Synonyms for benevolent
Adjective
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Though a small sample, their reactions were notably compassionate towards transgender people and supportive of the doctors who provided their care.—
Time,
Time,
7 Aug. 2025
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Being more compassionate and respectful to the needs of your squad and family, instead of just asserting your wants, adds a new dimension to your connection with them.—
Lisa Stardust,
Refinery29,
5 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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In addition, Brace will be barred from participating in Kansas charitable organizations in the future.—
Eleanor Nash,
Kansas City Star,
4 Aug. 2025
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Publicly available 990 forms show that Kraft was not paid a salary in recent years as head of his family’s charitable foundation.—
Gayla Cawley,
Boston Herald,
1 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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Budget-conscious indie in a tough marketplace Hernandez, Burns and Henderson launched Counterpart amid an industry contraction that has not been kind to independent companies.—
Nellie Andreeva,
Deadline,
11 Aug. 2025
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According to the study's findings, kids who were regularly described by parents as helpful and kind at ages five, seven and 11 were more likely to report healthier dietary habits at 14 and 17.—
Daniella Gray,
MSNBC Newsweek,
11 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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The Morning Pointe Foundation is the philanthropic arm of Morning Pointe Senior Living founded by senior health care entrepreneurs Greg A. Vital and Franklin Farrow.—
Gabrielle Chenault,
The Tennessean,
2 July 2025
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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
Adjective
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During World War II, America was also fighting Germany and Italy, but during the war, far fewer German and Italian non-citizen immigrants were interned than Japanese and those who were interned had been carefully vetted by the FBI as being sympathetic to their former homelands.—
Paul L. Newman,
New York Daily News,
6 Aug. 2025
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There's no telling if the judge who immediately granted the NYT such broad access, Ona Wang, will be sympathetic to OpenAI's arguments at this stage of the battle.—
Ashley Belanger,
ArsTechnica,
5 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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Curious, humane, and full of wit—perfect for anyone thinking seriously not just about how to lead, but about how to be.—
Mark Nevins,
Forbes.com,
11 Aug. 2025
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Abubaker thinks the regulations around halal food is part of what’s driving this interest nationwide, with requirements including making sure the animal is healthy at the time of slaughter and ensuring the animal’s death is quick and humane.—
Carolyn Stein,
Chicago Tribune,
31 July 2025
Adjective
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In the most generous sense, that is what Palantir’s data analytics tools do: Allow users — mostly military and government agencies, but also private-sector companies — to better visualize large datasets.—
Allison Morrow,
CNN Money,
7 Aug. 2025
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For most publishers, the grants are not generous enough to sustain an entire catalog, especially when compared to how tedious and time-consuming the application process is.—
Elizabeth Kaye Cook
August 6,
Literary Hub,
6 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Benevolent.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/benevolent. Accessed 20 Aug. 2025.
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