donor
Americannoun
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donors
plural
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a person who gives or donates.
- Synonyms:
- patron, sponsor, contributor, supporter
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Medicine/Medical. a person or animal providing blood, an organ, bone marrow cells, or other biological tissue for transfusion or transplantation.
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Law. a person who gives property by gift, legacy, or devise, or who confers a power of appointment.
adjective
noun
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a person who makes a donation
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med any person who voluntarily gives blood, skin, a kidney etc, for use in the treatment of another person
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law
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a person who makes a gift of property
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a person who bestows upon another a power of appointment over property
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the atom supplying both electrons in a coordinate bond
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an impurity, such as antimony or arsenic, that is added to a semiconductor material in order to increase its n-type conductivity by contributing free electrons Compare acceptor
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An atom or molecule that releases one or more electrons to another atom or molecule, resulting in a chemical bond or flow of electric current.
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Compare acceptor See also electron carrier
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An individual from whom blood, tissue, or an organ is taken for transfusion, implantation, or transplant.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of donor
1400–50; late Middle English donour < Anglo-French ( Old French doneur ) < Latin dōnātor, equivalent to dōnā ( re ) ( see donation) + -tor -tor
Explanation
A donor is a person who donates something of value to a person or an organization, especially a charity. A wealthy donor might leave her book collection to the local library in her will. Buildings on college campuses are frequently named after generous donors — if you give millions of dollars to your school, they might name the new library after you, crediting you as a donor. Another kind of donor gives blood that can be used for transfusions, or agrees to donate organs after his or her death. Donor comes from the Latin root donare, "give as a gift."
Vocabulary lists containing donor
Giving Words
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Workshop 1, Part 2
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The Suffix -or, Part 1
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
New campaign finance filings revealed that much of the advertising flurry was funded by one highly motivated donor: Elon Musk, the world’s wealthiest man.
From Salon ● Oct. 17, 2026
It remained effective even when the immune characteristics of donor cells did not match those of the recipient.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 16, 2026
The miscarriage rate—even with frozen or donor eggs—starts to climb as you get older.
From Slate ● Oct. 16, 2026
Will Oberndorf, also a co-founder, led the private markets practice at a family office founded by his father Bill Oberndorf, an investor and political donor.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 15, 2026
He had become a major donor to the Tuskegee Institute in Alabama.
From "Reaching for the Moon" by Katherine Johnson
An array of donors have put more than $1 million into outside groups backing Ugarte, a former Price aide.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 23, 2026
More recently, his marriage collapsed amid allegations of infidelity, while fresh reporting has raised questions about his relationships with wealthy donors and businessmen.
From Barron's ● Oct. 19, 2026
“Charlie Kirk was an incredible entrepreneur who had a real faculty with connecting with donors and big money,” said Binder, who has written multiple books about politics on college campuses.
From Salon ● Oct. 19, 2026
The Treasury Department recently said that it was made aware that “several eligible donors who would not otherwise make cash contributions are prepared to facilitate contributions of appreciated stock.”
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 19, 2026
Barack had to quickly hire staff, woo the types of donors who could write big checks, and figure out how to introduce his candidacy in the most resonant way possible.
From "Becoming" by Michelle Obama
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Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
