Patronage

How to spell patronage

9 letters · 3 syllables

How to pronounce patronage

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does patronage mean?

1. nounThe support, encouragement, or regular custom given by a person or organisation to a business, artist, or institution.
2. nounThe power to grant jobs, contracts, or favours, especially in politics, as a reward for loyalty.

Patronage in a sentence

• The gallery thanked its donors for their generous patronage over the decade.

• The new mayor was accused of handing out council jobs through patronage.

• Local cafes depend on the steady patronage of nearby office workers.

• Reformers wanted appointments based on merit rather than party patronage.

Where does patronage come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This word travels back to the Latin patronus, which meant a protector, defender, or master, and which was itself built directly on pater, the Latin word for 'father'. In ancient Rome a patronus was a man of standing who took poorer clients under his wing, offering legal protection and support in return for loyalty, so the idea of a powerful sponsor backing a dependent is baked into the word from the start. The noun passed through Old French as patronage before settling into English in the 1300s, where it first described the right to appoint someone to a church position. Over time the meaning broadened to cover any support that a wealthy or influential person gives to an artist, business, or cause, and later still to the simple act of being a regular customer. The shared pater root links it to a whole family of relatives such as 'patron', 'paternal', and 'patriot', which is a useful reminder that the spelling keeps the single t and the -age ending rather than doubling letters.

How the word is built

• patron- (from Latin patronus: protector, master)
• -age (noun-forming suffix denoting condition or action)