benefit

English

Etymology

(deprecated template usage)

From Late Middle English benefytt, benefett, alteration (due to Latin bene-) of benfet, bienfet, bienfait (“good or noble deed”), from Anglo-Norman benfet (“well-done”), Middle French bienfait, from Old French bienfet, bienfait (“foredeal, favour”), from past participle of bienfaire (“to do good, do well”), from bien (“well”) + faire (“to do”), modelled after Latin benefactum (“good deed”). More at benefactor.

Pronunciation

• enPR: bĕn'əfĭt, IPA^(key): /ˈbɛn.ə.fɪt/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

Noun

benefit (countable and uncountable, plural benefits)

1. An advantage; help or aid from something.

   It was for her benefit.   His benefit was free beer.

   • 1898, Winston Churchill, chapter 5, in The Celebrity:

     When this conversation was repeated in detail within the hearing of the young woman in question, and undoubtedly for his benefit, Mr. Trevor threw shame to the winds and scandalized the Misses Brewster then and there by proclaiming his father to have been a country storekeeper.

2. (insurance) A payment made in accordance with an insurance policy or a public assistance scheme.
3. An event such as a performance, given to raise funds for some cause.
4. (obsolete) beneficence; liberality

   (Can we find and add a quotation of Webster (1623) to this entry?)

Synonyms

• (advantage, help): foredeal, advantage, aid, assistance, boon, help
• (payment): subsidy

Antonyms

• (advantage, help): harm, disadvantage, encumbrance, hindrance, nuisance, obstacle, detriment

Derived terms

• beneficial
• benefiter
• benifit (a misspelling)

Translations

advantage, help or aid

• Arabic: فَائِدَة f (fāʔida), جَدْوَى (jadwā), مَنْفَعَة f (manfaʕa)
• Armenian: օգուտ (hy) (ōgut)
• Bulgarian: полза (bg) f (polza), изгода (bg) f (izgoda), доход (bg) m (dohod)
• Catalan: benefici (ca) m
• Cebuano: kaayohan, kapuslanan, dapot, gadgad, benepisyo
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 得益 (zh) (déyì), 益處／益处 (zh) (yìchù), 益处 (zh) (yìchu)

• Czech: výhoda (cs) f
• Danish: hjælp (da)
• Dutch: voordeel (nl) n, idiomatic expression: ten voordele van, nut (nl) n
• Esperanto: avantaĝo (eo), profito, utilo
• Ewe: viɖe
• Finnish: etu (fi), hyöty (fi)
• French: avantage (fr) m, bénéfice (fr) m
• Galician: beneficio (gl) m
• Georgian: სარგებელი (sargebeli), სარგებლობა (sargebloba), ხეირი (xeiri)
• German: Vorteil (de) m
• Greek: όφελος (el) n (ófelos), ωφέλεια (el) f (oféleia)

  Ancient: ὄφελος n (óphelos)

• Hungarian: haszon (hu), java (hu)
• Interlingua: beneficio, avantage
• Interlingue: ,
• Irish: brabach m
• Italian: beneficio (it) m
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Japanese: 利益 (ja) (りえき, rieki), public benefit: 公益 (ja) (こうえき, kōeki), 恩恵 (ja) (おんけい, onkei)
• Korean: 이익 (ko) (iik)
• Krymchak: мефе (mefe)
• Kurdish:

  Sorani:

• Lao: ປະໂຫຍດ (pa nyōt), ຜົນປະໂຫຍດ (phon pa nyōt)
• Latin: beneficium (la) n
• Lü: ᦎᦱᦡᦲ (ṫaaḋii)
• Malay: kebaikan, faedah
• Maori: huanga, patanga, pai (mi)
• Nahuatl: teinellili
• Occitan: benefici m
• Portuguese: benefício (pt)
• Romanian: avantaj (ro) n
• Russian: преиму́щество (ru) n (preimúščestvo), вы́года (ru) f (výgoda), по́льза (ru) f (pólʹza), при́быль (ru) f (príbylʹ), (privilege or exemption) льго́та (ru) (lʹgóta), бла́го (ru) n (blágo), (colloquial) толк (ru) m (tolk), (colloquial) прок (ru) m (prok)
• Scottish Gaelic: prothaid f
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Roman: dȍbrobīt (sh) f

• Spanish: beneficio (es) m, ventaja (es) f
• Swahili: manufaa (sw)
• Swedish: fördel (sv) c
• Telugu: లబ్ధి (te) (labdhi)
• Thai: ประโยชน์ (th) (bprà-yòot), ผลประโยชน์ (th) (pǒn-bprà-yòot)
• Turkish: yarar (tr), fayda (tr), avantaj (tr)
• Ukrainian: ко́ристь (uk) (kórystʹ), прибу́ток (prybútok)

profit, use

• Arabic: فَائِدَة f (fāʔida)
• French: bénéfice (fr) m
• German: Nutzen (de) m
• Hungarian: haszon (hu), előny (hu)
• Italian: beneficio (it) m
• Kurdish:
• Kyrgyz: пайда (ky) (payda)
• Lü: ᦎᦱᦡᦲ (ṫaaḋii)
• Malay: faedah
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Persian: فائده (fâ'ede)
• Russian: вы́года (ru) f (výgoda)
• Spanish: beneficio (es) m
• Tajik: фойда (foyda)
• Tatar: файда (tt) (fayda)
• Turkish: fayda (tr)
• Yagnobi: фойда (foyda)
• Zazaki: fayde

payment, subsidy

• Armenian: նպաստ (hy) (npast)
• Bulgarian: социална помощ (socialna pomošt)
• Dutch: uitkering (nl), subsidie (nl) f
• Esperanto: subvencio
• Finnish: avustus (fi), korvaus (fi)
• French: subvention (fr) f
• German: Leistung (de) f
• Greek: επίδομα (el) n (epídoma)
• Hungarian: juttatás (hu), támogatás (hu)
• Japanese: 給付金 (きゅうふきん, kyūfukin), 手当 (ja) (てあて, teate)
• Korean: 급부 (ko) (geupbu), 수당 (ko) (sudang)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Maori: mini oranga, penihana
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: ytelse m

• Portuguese: pagamento (pt) m, subsídio (pt) m
• Russian: посо́бие (ru) n (posóbije), социа́льная по́мощь f (sociálʹnaja pómoščʹ)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Roman: subvèncija (sh), nȃknada (sh) f

• Spanish: prestación (es) f
• Swedish: bidrag (sv) n, understöd (sv) n
• Telugu: లబ్ధి (te) (labdhi)
• Ukrainian: (соціа́льна) допомо́га ((sociálʹna) dopomóha)

performance given to raise funds

• Bulgarian: бенефис (bg) m (benefis)
• Catalan: benefici (ca) m
• Dutch: benefiet (nl) m, benefietconcert n
• Esperanto: benefico
• Finnish: lahjanäytäntö, lahjanäytös, lahjaottelu
• German: Benefizkonzert (de) n, Benefizveranstaltung f
• Hungarian: jótékonysági rendezvény (hu)
• Japanese: 慈善興行 (じぜんこうぎょう, jizenkōgyō)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Korean: 자선행사 (jaseonhaengsa)
• Portuguese: beneficente (pt) m, evento beneficente m
• Romanian: beneficiu (ro) n, beneficii n pl
• Russian: бенефи́с (ru) m (benefís)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Roman: dobrotvorna akcija f

• Spanish: beneficio (es) m
• Ukrainian: бенефі́с (uk) (benefís)

See also

• lagniappe

Verb

benefit (third-person singular simple present benefits, present participle benefiting or benefitting, simple past and past participle benefited or benefitted)

1. (transitive) To be or to provide a benefit to.
   • Bible, Jer. xviii. 10

     I will repent of the good, wherewith I said I would benefit them.

2. (intransitive) To receive a benefit (from); to be a beneficiary.

Usage notes

• Benefiting and benefited are more common, with benefitting and benefitted being minor variants, especially in the US.

Synonyms

• help, batten, behoove

Antonyms

• malefic
• detriment

Derived terms

• benefit association
• benefit-cost analysis
• benefit-cost ratio
• benefit dollar
• benefit in kind
• benefit of clergy
• benefit principle
• benefits coordinator
• benefit society
• bennies
• cafeteria benefit
• child tax benefit
• core benefit
• cost-benefit analysis
• death benefit
• elective benefit
• employee benefit
• equivalent annual benefit
• family benefit
• friend with benefits
• fringe benefit
• income-related benefit
• injury benefit
• maternity benefit
• means-tested benefit
• nonstatutory fringe benefit
• nonwage benefit
• private benefit
• risk-benefit
• sickness benefit
• state benefit
• stranded benefit
• supplementary benefit
• survivor benefit
• unemployment benefit
• variable death benefit
• widow’s benefit

 

Related terms

• benefactor
• beneficence
• beneficent
• beneficiary

 

Translations

to be or provide a benefit to

• Bulgarian: ползвам някого (polzvam njakogo)
• Catalan: beneficiar (ca)
• Czech: prospět
• Esperanto: profiti
• Finnish: olla hyödyksi, olla hyödyllinen, hyödyttää (fi)
• German: von Vorteil sein
• Greek: ωφελώ (el) (ofeló), ευεργετώ (el) (evergetó)

  Ancient: ὠφελέω (ōpheléō), ἀγαθοποιέω (agathopoiéō)

• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Hungarian: használ (hu), javára/hasznára/előnyére van/válik
• Japanese: 役立つ (やくだつ, yakudatsu)
• Korean: 이롭다 (ko) (iropda)
• Latin: prōsum (la), iuvō
• Portuguese: beneficiar (pt)
• Spanish: beneficiar (es)
• Swedish: gagna (sv), gynna (sv)
• Westrobothnian:

to receive a benefit

• Catalan: beneficiar (ca)
• Czech: prospět
• Esperanto: profiti
• Finnish: hyötyä (fi)
• French: profiter (fr)
• Georgian: სარგებლობა (sargebloba), გამორჩენა (gamorčena)
• German: profitieren (de)
• Greek: ωφελούμαι (el) (ofeloúmai), ευεργετούμαι (el) (evergetoúmai)

  Ancient Greek: ὠφελέομαι (ōpheléomai)

• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Hungarian: profitál, hasznát látja
• Japanese: 得する (とくする, tokusuru)
• Korean: 견리하다 (gyeollihada)
• Ngazidja Comorian: uhundra faiɗa
• Portuguese: beneficiar-se de
• Spanish: beneficiar (es)
• Swedish: dra fördel av, gynnas (sv), gagnas (sv)

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Italian

Etymology

Borrowed from English benefit.

Noun

benefit m (uncountable)

1. benefit, advantage

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Latin

Pronunciation

• (Classical Latin) IPA^(key): /ˈbe.ne.fit/, [ˈbɛnɛfɪt̪]
• (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): /ˈbe.ne.fit/, [ˈbɛːnefit̪]

Verb

(deprecated template usage) benefit

1. third-person singular present passive indicative of benefaciō