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View synonyms for alms

alms

[ ahmz ]

noun

, (used with a singular or plural verb)
  1. money, food, or other donations given to people in need; anything given as charity:

    She showed her generosity by giving alms regularly.



alms

/ ɑːmz /

plural noun

  1. charitable donations of money or goods to the poor or needy
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012


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Word History and Origins

Origin of alms1

First recorded before 1000; Middle English almes, almesse, Old English ælmesse (compare Old Saxon alamōsna, Old High German alamuosa, Dutch aalmoes; Old Spanish almosna ), ultimately derived from Late Latin eleēmosyna, from Greek eleēmosýnē “compassion, alms,” derivative of éleos “pity”; eleemosynary
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Word History and Origins

Origin of alms1

Old English ælmysse, from Late Latin eleēmosyna, from Greek eleēmosunē pity; see eleemosynary
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Example Sentences

Another piece might cause people to come up short is an elaborate green Burmese Buddhist alms bowl on a stand covered in gold.

“You can't give alms to the poor on one level and have your hands on their throat on another,” he said.

A beggar asking alms under the character of a poor scholar, a gentleman put the question, Quomodo vales?

But when thou dost alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doth.

To such a one he would say, 'Wilt thou cease to beg alms of Me in such a shameless manner?

The surplus was distributed in alms amongst the poor, a duty strenuously prescribed by their moral code.

In point of fact, prayers are spoken of as if they were equivalent to sacrifice, alms-giving, or any other supposed virtue.

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