contribution
noun
Simple meaning
Something given or offered that adds to a larger whole.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
kahntruhbyooshuhnSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
kɑntɹəbˈjuʃən
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
noun
An amount of money contributed
“He expected his contribution to be repaid with interest.”
Something given or offered that adds to a larger whole.
An amount of money given toward something.
Act of giving in common with others for a common purpose especially to a charity
The act of contributing.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- A2 · Elementary (estimated)
- Frequency
- Common
- Typical Use
- Everyday English
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: An amount of money contributed
Used this way, contribution is a common word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.
“He expected his contribution to be repaid with interest.”
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Not strongly marked
- How common
- Common
- Connotation
- Matter-of-fact
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Usage note
It most often appears in the pattern “contribution to …”, which is worth copying when you use it.
Natural pattern: contribution to …
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
More ways to use contribution
- “He expected his contribution to be repaid with interest.”noun
- “I am proud of my contribution in advancing the project.”noun
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
Word Family
Related forms, grouped by how they connect.
Compound terms
Established multiword terms.
A contribution made to a politician or a political campaign or a political party.
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.