n. 1. The act of conferring aid of some sort. 2. A charitable gift or deed. [Late Latin benefactiō, benefactiōn-, from Latin benefactus, past participle of benefacere, to do a service : bene, well; see deu-2 in the Appendix of Indo-European roots + facere, to do; see dhē- in the Appendix of Indo-European roots.] bene·fac′tive (-tĭv) adj. |
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.