benevolent
kind and helpful
TRANSLATION
benevolent = mildtätig, wohlwollend benevolence = die Gutmütigkeit, das Wohlwollen --- GOOGLE INDEX benevolent: approximately 17,300,000 Google hits
STATISTICS
IN THE PRESS
"In my judgment, the best course of action is to persuade Germany to choose between becoming a more BENEVOLENT leading nation, or leaving the euro. In other words, Germany must lead or leave."
(Financier George Soros)
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Trees that size are like whales, sort of BENEVOLENT in their huge bulk …
(This Old House magazine)
(Financier George Soros)
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Trees that size are like whales, sort of BENEVOLENT in their huge bulk …
(This Old House magazine)
Did you
know?
benevolent
adjective
- well meaning and kindly
benevolence
noun
(Oxford English Dictionary)
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Benevolent, and the associated noun benevolence, stems from the Middle French benivolent and directly from the Latin benevolentem (nominative benevolens), meaning "wishing (someone) well."
Benevolent can be found in several expressions, including "benevolent society," which describes an organization that gives money to and helps a particular group of people in need.
The noun benevolence is a key element in the (meanwhile discredited) pseudoscience of phrenology, which is the study of the shape and protuberances of the skull, According to those who believe in this theory, benevolence represents the true goodness of the mind and is located in the upper part of the forehead. A convex shaped forehead indicates strong benevolence while a slanted one supposedly denotes negative benevolence.
So what would this tell us about the shape of the skull of a so-called benevolent dictator? This expression describes an authoritarian leader who exercises political power for the benefit of the whole population rather than exclusively for his or her own self-interest or benefit or for the benefit of only a small portion of the population.
Political experts argue whether the world really has benevolent dictators as the term appears on the surface to be a paradox. Cuba's eternal leader Fidel Castro comes close to fitting the description, although pictures do in fact reveal a slightly slanted forehead.
Frederick The Great of Prussia is said to have been a type of benevolent dictator as evidenced by one his greatest achievements: controlling grain prices so that government storehouses could enable civilian population to survive in needy regions, where the harvest was poor. On the other hand, he was close friends with Voltaire who was quoted as saying, "The best government is a benevolent tyranny tempered by an occasional assassination." As the old saying goes, with friends like that, who needs enemies?
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SMUGGLE OWAD into today's conversation
"She has a benevolent smile that makes people feel comfortable talking to her."
adjective
- well meaning and kindly
benevolence
noun
(Oxford English Dictionary)
---
Benevolent, and the associated noun benevolence, stems from the Middle French benivolent and directly from the Latin benevolentem (nominative benevolens), meaning "wishing (someone) well."
Benevolent can be found in several expressions, including "benevolent society," which describes an organization that gives money to and helps a particular group of people in need.
The noun benevolence is a key element in the (meanwhile discredited) pseudoscience of phrenology, which is the study of the shape and protuberances of the skull, According to those who believe in this theory, benevolence represents the true goodness of the mind and is located in the upper part of the forehead. A convex shaped forehead indicates strong benevolence while a slanted one supposedly denotes negative benevolence.
So what would this tell us about the shape of the skull of a so-called benevolent dictator? This expression describes an authoritarian leader who exercises political power for the benefit of the whole population rather than exclusively for his or her own self-interest or benefit or for the benefit of only a small portion of the population.
Political experts argue whether the world really has benevolent dictators as the term appears on the surface to be a paradox. Cuba's eternal leader Fidel Castro comes close to fitting the description, although pictures do in fact reveal a slightly slanted forehead.
Frederick The Great of Prussia is said to have been a type of benevolent dictator as evidenced by one his greatest achievements: controlling grain prices so that government storehouses could enable civilian population to survive in needy regions, where the harvest was poor. On the other hand, he was close friends with Voltaire who was quoted as saying, "The best government is a benevolent tyranny tempered by an occasional assassination." As the old saying goes, with friends like that, who needs enemies?
---
SMUGGLE OWAD into today's conversation
"She has a benevolent smile that makes people feel comfortable talking to her."
