Words of Positivity
Browse the A to Z index4,633 ENTRIES

Volunteerism

n.kind, resilientprofessional

What it means

The practice of supporting communities through volunteer service.

Reach for it when praising a community culture of sustained voluntary service

Strong volunteerism sustained the town's free evening meal program.

Choose between these

6
  • everyday

    voluntary action

    freely chosen effort is the plain subject

    not when The phrase lacks the cultural pattern implied here.

  • warm

    community service

    local benefit and practical help lead

    not when Community service can be court-ordered.

  • warm

    mutual aid

    neighbors support one another reciprocally

    not when Mutual aid is structurally different from charity.

  • professional

    civic service

    work contributes directly to public life

    not when Civic service can be mandatory or paid.

  • formal

    philanthropy

    organized giving is the principal contribution

    not when Philanthropy centers resources rather than hands-on work.

  • literary

    public spirit

    willingness to serve the common good is praised

    not when Public spirit is an attitude, not actual service.

Said against

3
  • apathy
  • coercion
  • self-interest

It naturally appears in

3
  • spirit of volunteerism

    A spirit of volunteerism filled every shift on the cleanup roster.

  • culture of volunteerism

    The school built a culture of volunteerism without making service compulsory.

  • youth volunteerism

    Youth volunteerism brought new energy to the oral-history project.

Where this comes from

Praise volunteerism without treating unpaid labor as a substitute for safe staffing and public responsibility.

The definition and the example on this page are written here. The dictionaries above ground which meaning is being described, not the wording.