Benevolence1. (n.) The disposition to do good; good will; charitableness; love of mankind, accompanied with a desire to promote their happiness.
2. (n.) An act of kindness; good done; charity given.
3. (n.) A species of compulsory contribution or tax, which has sometimes been illegally exacted by arbitrary kings of England, and falsely represented as a gratuity.
Thesaurus Entries
BOMFOG, Benthamism, Christian charity, Christian love, accommodatingness, act of grace, act of kindness, advantageousness, affability, agape, agreeableness, altruism, amiability, amity, auspiciousness, benefaction, beneficence, beneficialness, benefit, benevolent disposition, benevolentness, benignancy, benignity, bigheartedness, blessing, boon, brightness, brotherly love, caritas, charitableness, charity, cheerfulness, cheeriness, class, clemency, cogency, comity, commiseration, compassion, complaisance, compliance, compliment, condolence, condonation, contribution, courtesy, decency, desert, disregard, do-goodism, donation, excellence, expedience, fairness, favor, favorableness, feeling, fineness, first-rateness, flower power, forbearance, forgiveness, forgivingness, fortunateness, friendliness, friendship, generosity, generousness, gift, giving, good auspices, good deed, good offices, good omen, good turn, goodliness, goodness, goodwill, grace, graciosity, graciousness, grant, greatheartedness, healthiness, helpfulness, humanitarianism, humanity, indulgence, kind deed, kind offices, kindliness, kindly act, kindness, labor of love, largeheartedness, largess, leniency, long-suffering, longanimity, love, love of mankind, luckiness, magnanimity, manna, mercy, merit, mitigation, mitzvah, niceness, obligation, obligingness, office, overlooking, pardon, pathos, patience, philanthropism, philanthropy, pity, pleasantness, present, profitableness, propitiousness, prosperousness, quality, quarter, relief, reprieve, rewardingness, ruth, self-pity, service, skillfulness, soundness, superiority, sympathy, tolerance, turn, unrevengefulness, unselfishness, usefulness, utilitarianism, validity, value, virtue, virtuousness, welfarism, well-disposedness, wholeness, worth