Altruism

ahd-5
  • noun. Unselfish concern for the welfare of others; selflessness.
  • noun. Instinctive behavior that is detrimental to the individual but favors the survival or spread of that individual's genes, as by benefiting its relatives.
  • The Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
  • noun. A term first employed by the French philosopher Comte to denote the benevolent instincts and emotions in general, or action prompted by them: the opposite of egoism.
  • the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English
  • noun. Regard for others, both natural and moral; devotion to the interests of others; brotherly kindness; -- opposed to egoism or selfishness.
  • Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
  • noun. Regard for others, both natural and moral; devotion to the interests of others; brotherly kindness; – opposed to egoism or selfishness.
  • WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
  • noun. the quality of unselfish concern for the welfare of others
  • Word Usage
    "This use of the term altruism makes it a very different thing from the quality or characteristic which in the West is described by this term."
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