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alms

alms

1 7.5
Money or things given to poor people to help them
  • noun
  • /ɑlmz/
translation icon : limosna
  • Every Sunday, the community collected alms to help the local homeless shelter.

It is perfected by alms and prayer.

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Examples

  • It is perfected by alms and prayer.

  • Never mind we got up early to see the giving of the alms ceremony.

  • And giving alms would be an expression of a more perfect kind of love, which is what charity is.

  • We were out wandering in the rice paddies on a way to a village to collect alms food one day with my teacher, Ajam Cha and some monks.

  • The elderly woman donated her savings as alms to support those in need.

  • In many cultures, giving alms is an important practice to show compassion for the poor.

Synonyms

donation
vsalms
359 1.9

Money, goods, or time given to help others and organizations

is aimed only at poor people rather than organizations
offering
vsalms
54 3.7

A gift given to a church or charity

goes to poor people directly rather than to organizations

Compounds

6.9

A box in a church where people put money for the poor

9.9

A shallow dish that people pass around during a religious service to collect money

7.9

A tray people pass around during a religious service to collect money

Giving money, food, or other help to people in need

How Much

endowment
  • Formal
67 6.5
contribution
373 2.8
donation
359 1.9
alms
1 7.5
offering
54 3.7

Surface Forms

alms singular
alms plural

Etymology

Alms comes from an old Greek church word eleemosyne meaning 'mercy' or 'compassion'. So alms are gifts given from mercy to help poor people, like charity.