TOP

Definition of altruism noun from the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

altruism

noun
 
/ˈæltruɪzəm/
 
/ˈæltruɪzəm/
[uncountable] (formal)
jump to other results
  1. the fact of caring about the needs and happiness of other people and being willing to do things to help them, even if it brings no advantage to yourself
    • Politicians are not necessarily motivated by pure altruism.
    Word Originmid 19th cent.: from French altruisme, from Italian altrui ‘somebody else’, from Latin alteri huic ‘to this other’.
See altruism in the Oxford Advanced American DictionarySee altruism in the Oxford Learner's Dictionary of Academic English
trait
noun
 
 
From the Word list
Oxford 5000
B2
Oxford Learner's Dictionaries Word of the Day