Skip to main content
Glite Dictionary
public charity

public charity

1 3.4
A group that mainly gets money from many people to help others
  • noun
  • /ˈpʌblɪk ˈtʃærɪti/
  • Formal
translation icon : organización benéfica pública
  • On the other hand, public charities have fewer regulatory requirements but are harder to form.
  • public charity under Section 501(c)(3)
  • public charities and private foundations

Examples

  • However, looking at statistics as of August 2016, roughly 440,000 reporting public charities showed the following breakdown in terms of revenue and assets:

    Academic text (2017)

  • The split between public charities and private foundations is an important division among 501(c)(3) organizations.

    Academic text (2017)

  • Compare the number of public charities in the United States.

    Academic text (2017)

  • Open Society Institute - Baltimore is a public charity and the sole field office of the Open Society Foundations' U.S. Programs.

    Blog text (15)

  • The list includes 501(c)(3) organizations, which are considered public charities.

    Blog text (6)

  • As a public charity, the OEF is something of a rarity among corporate educational foundations.

    Academic text (2007)

  • Ministry Watch profiles public charities, churches and para church ministries.

  • The heightened public debate and increased regulatory scrutiny of nonprofit organizations has been fueled by scandals at both foundations and public charities.

    Academic text (2006)

  • There are some 1.4 million organizations in the United States that qualify as public charities under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, including religious congregations, which generally don't have to file with the IRS, according to figures cited by Independent Sector, a coalition of nonprofit groups that convened the Panel on the Nonprofit Sector.

    Academic text (2007)

  • The local animal shelter is a public charity that relies on donations from community members.

Synonyms

charity
vspublic charity
408 1.3

An organization like a food bank that gives money or help to people in need

depends mainly on donations from many ordinary people rather than few large sources
nonprofit
vspublic charity
  • US
133 3.5

An organization that does not try to make money and helps people or the community

receives most funding from many ordinary people not a small group
nonprofit organization
vspublic charity
  • US
27 3.0

A group that helps people or the community without trying to make money

is funded mainly by many ordinary donors rather than limited private sources

Antonyms

private foundation
  • Specialized
4 4.8

A charity that gets most of its money from one person or company

How Publicly Funded

public charity
  • Formal
1 3.4
charity
408 1.3
private foundation
  • Specialized
4 4.8

Surface Forms

public charity singular
public charities plural

Morphology

public + charity

The noun phrase is compositionally straightforward: 'public' (of or supported by the general public) modifies 'charity' (an organization helping people), so a learner who knows both words can infer it refers to a charity associated with or serving the public. While there is a technical legal sense about funding sources, the core meaning is directly derivable from the constituents and is cross-linguistically accessible.

Etymology

Public charity comes from the image of a charity with a large jar in a public place where many people drop small coins. So it means a charity 'supported by many people' rather than by a few private donors.