Donation
nounSomething, especially money, given voluntarily to a charity, cause, or fund.
How to spell donation
8 letters · 3 syllables
How to pronounce donation
Say the part in capitals loudest.
What does donation mean?
- nounSomething, especially money, given voluntarily to a charity, cause, or fund.
Donation in a sentence
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The shelter relies on every donation to feed the animals.
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She made a generous donation to the hospital appeal.
Where does donation come from?
Language of origin: Latin
Donation comes from the Latin donatio, meaning 'a giving' or 'a gift', which was built on the verb donare, 'to give', itself derived from donum, the simple noun for 'a gift'. The root ultimately traces back to the same Indo-European source that gave Latin dare, 'to give', a relative of words like 'date' and 'data'. English borrowed donation through Old French in the late 1400s, originally in the legal sense of formally transferring property or making a grant. Over time it broadened into the everyday meaning of a voluntary contribution, especially to charity. The kindred words 'donor' and 'donate' share the same don- core, which is a useful reminder that the spelling keeps a single n before the -ation ending.
How the word is built
- don- (from donare: to give)
- -ation (noun of action)
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