generous
/ˈdʒɛn(ə)rəs
/adjective
1Showing a readiness to give more of something, especially money, than is strictly necessary or expected: a generous benefactor to the University...
- She was incredibly generous with her money, showering those she loved with gifts.
- Nothing wrong ever came of being generous with your money, and he had enough to share.
- He is generous with his time and money, and a principled and loyal friend.
Synonyms
liberal, lavish, magnanimous, munificent, giving, open-handed, free-handed, bountiful, unselfish, ungrudging, unstinting, unsparing, free, indulgent, prodigal, princely
literary bounteous, plenteous
rare eleemosynary, benignant
1.1Showing kindness towards others: a generous assessment of his work...
- Those who wanted to attain success ought to be generous and well disposed towards others.
- We had a wonderful time and his family and friends were kind and generous toward me.
- To her family she was a loving, kind-hearted and generous mother and grandmother.
Synonyms
magnanimous, kind, kindly, benevolent, beneficent, altruistic, charitable, philanthropic, noble, lofty, high-minded, big-hearted, honourable, good, unselfish, self-sacrificing, unprejudiced, disinterested
2(Of a thing) larger or more plentiful than is usual or necessary: a generous helping of pasta...
- Add a generous seasoning of Maldon sea salt and freshly ground black pepper and they're ready to serve.
- Add in the parsley, salt and a generous amount of freshly ground black pepper and toss.
- Sprinkle, as you go, with generous pinches of flaky sea salt and vigorous twists of freshly ground black pepper.
Synonyms
lavish, plentiful, copious, ample, liberal, munificent, bountiful, large, huge, great, abundant, profuse, rich, bumper, flush, overflowing, superabundant, infinite, inexhaustible, opulent, prolific, teeming;
in plenty, in abundance
informal a gogo, galore
South African informal lank
literary bounteous, plenteous
Derivatives
generousness
- Think of the generousness with which he doles out close-ups to his co-stars.
- She liked to catch her employees unaware, and would fluctuate between uneconomical generousness and scrupulous economy, possibly just for that purpose.
- The films seem to get better on each repeated viewing, mainly because they have an almost throwaway generousness of ideas.
Origin
Late 16th century: via Old French from Latin generosus 'noble, magnanimous', from genus, gener- 'stock, race'. The original sense was 'of noble birth', hence 'characteristic of noble birth, courageous, magnanimous, not mean'.