philanthropic

adjective

phil·​an·​throp·​ic ˌfi-lən-ˈthrä-pik 

variants or less commonly philanthropical

ˌfi-lən-ˈthrä-pi-kəl 

1

: of, relating to, or characterized by philanthropy : humanitarian

2

: dispensing or receiving aid from funds set aside for humanitarian purposes

philanthropically

ˌfi-lən-ˈthrä-pi-k(ə-)lē 

adverb

Synonyms

• altruistic
• beneficent
• benevolent
• charitable
• do-good
• eleemosynary
• good
• humanitarian

Examples of philanthropic in a Sentence

a philanthropic society that has been doing good for over a century

Recent Examples on the Web

Though Messiah has had philanthropic success — including a donor who recently pledged to match $100,000 in donations — rising food prices could mean making cuts, Lemke said. —Star Tribune, Chicago Tribune, 2 Apr. 2025

Rather than ‘doing good’ with a one-time injection of funds, this model allows philanthropic capital to regenerate over time. —Chris Gallagher, USA TODAY, 13 Feb. 2025

The idea is simple: philanthropic capital can jump-start projects, and federal funding could eventually help scale it nationwide. —Michael Sheldrick, Forbes, 24 Dec. 2024

While building these cashflow models will likely be complex and expensive, philanthropic capital could step in to help with data collection and provide technical support. —Olivia White michael Wiegand, Harvard Business Review, 26 Sep. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1789, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for philanthropic

• arthroscopic
• barotropic
• cystoscopic
• endoscopic
• gyroscopic
• hygroscopic
• isentropic
• isotopic
• isotropic
• macroscopic
• microscopic
• orthotopic

Kids Definition

philanthropic

adjective

phil·​an·​throp·​ic ˌfil-ən-ˈthräp-ik 

: of, relating to, or devoted to philanthropy : charitable, benevolent

philanthropical

-ˈthräp-i-kəl

adjective