Wiktionary

munificent

EnglishEdit

WOTD – 6 September 2012

EtymologyEdit

Back-formation from munificence, from Latin mūnificentia.

PronunciationEdit

AdjectiveEdit

munificent (comparative more munificent, superlative most munificent)

  1. (of a person or group) Very liberal in giving or bestowing.
    • 1838, L[etitia] E[lizabeth] L[andon], Duty and Inclination, volume III, London: Henry Colburn, page 272:
      Munificent as he was in his own disposition in the conferring of favours, his acceptance, under the circumstances we have described, of the fortune bestowed by Robert, he found upon reasoning with himself to be perfectly consistent with the most scrupulous principles of uprightness and probity: […]
    • 1859, Charles Dickens, chapter 30, in A Tale of Two Cities:
      Tellson's Bank […] was a munificent house, and extended great liberality to old customers who had fallen from their high estate.
    • 1974 April 8, “Politics: Milkmen Skimming Off More Cream”, in Time‎[1]:
      [M]ilk producers are among the most munificent backers of political campaigns in the U.S.
    • 2008 March 20, Martin Filler, “Broad-Minded Museum”, in New York Review of Books‎[2]:
      An exceptionally munificent benefactor of several institutions, he has given $100 million each to MIT and Harvard.
  2. (of a gift, donation, etc.) Very generous; lavish.
    • 1886, Louisa May Alcott, chapter 1, in Jo's Boys:
    • 1914, William MacLeod Raine, chapter 25, in A Daughter of the Donss:
      It was all very well for this casual youth to make her a present of a half million acres of land in this debonair way, but she could not persuade herself to accept so munificent a gift.
    • 1969 April 11, “Business: Up, Up and Away with Wages”, in Time‎[3]:
      The machinists finally agreed to a munificent increase averaging 5.7% a year for three years.

SynonymsEdit

Derived termsEdit

Related termsEdit

TranslationsEdit

DutchEdit

EtymologyEdit

From Latin munificus, munificens (“liberal”), from munus (“gift”) + facio (“I make”).

AdjectiveEdit

munificent (comparative munificenter, superlative munificentst)

  1. generous

InflectionEdit

Inflection of munificent
uninflected munificent
inflected munificente
comparative munificenter
positive comparative superlative
predicative/adverbial munificent munificenter het munificentst
het munificentste
indefinite m./f. sing. munificente munificentere munificentste
n. sing. munificent munificenter munificentste
plural munificente munificentere munificentste
definite munificente munificentere munificentste
partitive munificents munificenters —

SynonymsEdit

FrenchEdit

EtymologyEdit

From munificence, from Latin munificentia (“generosity”), from munus (“gift”).

PronunciationEdit

IPA(key): /my.ni.fi.sɑ̃/

AdjectiveEdit

munificent (feminine munificente, masculine plural munificents, feminine plural munificentes)

  1. munificent
    1946, André Malraux, La Condition humaine, Folio Plus Classiques, published 2019, page 191:
    « Soyez comme à l’ordinaire, munificent, dit-il à Gisors : donnez-moi votre caquetusse. »
    (please add an English translation of this quote)

Further readingEdit

RomanianEdit

EtymologyEdit

From French munificent.

AdjectiveEdit

munificent m or n (feminine singular munificentă, masculine plural munificenți, feminine and neuter plural munificente)

  1. munificent

DeclensionEdit

Declension of munificent
singular plural
masculine neuter feminine masculine neuter feminine
nominative/
accusative 		indefinite munificent munificentă munificenți munificente
definite munificentul munificenta munificenții munificentele
genitive/
dative 		indefinite munificent munificente munificenți munificente
definite munificentului munificentei munificenților munificentelor
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