donation

noun

dō-ˈnā-shən How to pronounce donation (audio)
Definition of donationnext
1
as in contribution
a gift of money or its equivalent to a charity, humanitarian cause, or public institution a generous donation to the orphanage from an anonymous benefactor

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance
2
as in gift
something given to someone without expectation of a return a chocolate cake was my donation to the office party

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of donation An analysis of more than 100,000 donors across over 2,000 organizations found that recurring donor bases grew 127% from 2018 to 2022, while recurring-donation revenue rose 144%. — Yuriy Boyechko, Forbes.com, 13 Oct. 2026 Tax records obtained by ProPublica show at least $775 million in donations to nonprofits between 1996 and 2018, almost all of it anonymous. — Catherina Gioino, Fortune, 13 Oct. 2026 So, that means she’s made all her charitable donations in the last five years or so. — Lizzie Lanuza, StyleCaster, 13 Oct. 2026 But those out-of-state donations were a new phenomenon, Folwell said at the time. — Sarah Cutler, Idaho Statesman, 12 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for donation
Recent Examples of Synonyms for donation
  1. contribution
  2. gift
  3. presentation
  4. present
Noun
  • Many of the Muslim donors hold senior leadership positions at various Muslim advocacy organizations, but list their day jobs in tech and finance as their sole occupation on the campaign contribution forms.
    — Mia Cathell, The Washington Examiner, 14 Oct. 2026
  • Walsh’s creative contribution will be visible not only in the individual pieces, but also in how the collection is styled, photographed and presented.
    — Lisa Lockwood, Footwear News, 14 Oct. 2026
Definition of contribution
Noun
  • Every episode at Season 23 is a gift, and a lot of people here feel that way.
    — Max Gao, Variety, 16 Oct. 2026
  • Trump opened his remarks there by describing how the new jet parked behind him was a gift from the Qatari royal family.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 16 Oct. 2026
Definition of gift
Noun
  • Calvin Klein himself showed up at Leoni’s debut runway presentation in February 2025, seated in the front row alongside Kelly Klein, Kate Moss and Christy Turlington.
    — Samantha Conti, Footwear News, 16 Oct. 2026
  • The focus was how AI can be integrated and optimize the existing business – rather than presentation of noisy (and controversial) slates of AI TV shows and movies.
    — Jesse Whittock, Deadline, 15 Oct. 2026
Definition of presentation
Noun
  • Selma also has pseudobulbar affect, a neurological condition secondary to her MS, which bears directly on how a medical episode presents to people who do not know her.
    — Hilary Lewis, HollywoodReporter, 16 Oct. 2026
  • Growing up Gottlieb remembers Movado as a destination for her and her mother — for bat mitzvah presents, milestone birthdays and pieces of their own.
    — Thomas Waller, Footwear News, 13 Oct. 2026
Definition of present

Browse Nearby Words

donating
donation
donations
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Donation.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/donation. Accessed 20 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of compunction

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

The Exceptions of '-s' and '-es' Plurals

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

16 Food Words Recently Added to the Dictionary

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

7 Words for Bad Endings and Rough Situations

Did 'orange' the fruit or the color come first?
See More

Popular

See More

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

16 Food Words Recently Added to the Dictionary

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
artwork of illustrated limes with the text limes and smile with an arrow connecting the two words
Quiz: Spot the Anagram! Scramble these words to find new words with the e...
See All