Philanthropic

How to spell philanthropic

13 letters · 4 syllables

How to pronounce philanthropic

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does philanthropic mean?

1. adjectiveRelating to or characterised by a generous concern for the welfare of others, especially through charitable giving.

Philanthropic in a sentence

• The foundation funds philanthropic projects in housing and education.

• Her philanthropic work supported several hospitals over the decades.

Where does philanthropic come from?

Language of origin: Greek

This word traces back to the Greek philanthropos, which described someone who loves humankind, built from philein, meaning 'to love', and anthropos, meaning 'human being' or 'mankind'. The ancient Greeks used the idea to praise a generous, kindly disposition toward other people, and the related noun philanthropia carried the sense of benevolence and humane feeling. The word reached English in the seventeenth century, partly through Latin and French scholarly use, and by the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries it had settled firmly into the language of charity and good works. The same anthropos root sits inside familiar relatives such as 'anthropology' and 'misanthrope', while the phil- element reappears in 'philosophy' (love of wisdom). Remembering that buried 'anthrop' for human beings is the key to the spelling, since the tricky middle, with its 'an' and silent-feeling 'h', is where careful writers slow down.

How the word is built

• phil- (loving)
• anthrop (human being, mankind)
• -ic (adjective suffix)