patronage
noun/ˈpætrənɪdʒ/, /ˈpeɪtrənɪdʒ/
/ˈpætrənɪdʒ/, /ˈpeɪtrənɪdʒ/
[uncountable]- the support, especially financial, that is given to a person or an organization by a patron
- Patronage of the arts comes from businesses and private individuals.
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- the system by which an important person gives help or a job to somebody in return for their support
- Recruits are selected on merit, not through political patronage.
- (especially North American English) the support that a person gives a shop, restaurant, etc. by spending money thereTopics Cooking and eatingc2
Word Originlate Middle English: from Old French, from patron ‘protector, advocate’, from Latin patronus ‘protector of clients, defender’, from pater, patr- ‘father’.
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patronage