Meaning & use
alms
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Meaning
nounpluralold-fashionedreligion
Money, food or other help given freely to people who are poor and have nothing to live on.
Grammar: Takes a plural verb in practice but has no singular: the alms were shared out; not 'an alm'.
Patterns
- give alms to someone
- ask for alms
- alms for someone
Every morning the monks left the gate to beg for alms in the village.
In the story, the old woman gave alms to a stranger who turned out to be a prince.
Medieval churches often collected alms for the sick and the homeless.
Common combinations
- give alms
- Pilgrims were expected to give alms at each shrine along the route.
- beg for alms
- A thin traveler sat by the road to beg for alms.
- collect alms
- The brothers collect alms once a week and share them with the poor.
- alms for the poor
- The box by the church door was marked 'Alms for the poor'.
- ask for alms
- Beggars would ask for alms outside the market gates.
Synonyms and how they differ
- charity
- Charity is the normal modern word and covers both gifts and organizations, while alms sounds old or religious and means the gift itself.
- handout
- Handout is informal and can sound slightly critical of the giving, whereas alms has a solemn, historical tone.
- donation
- A donation is a gift to an organization or cause, often a chosen amount, but alms are given directly to the needy.
Word family
- almshouse noun
- a historical building where poor people were housed free of charge
- almsgiving noun
- the act or practice of giving to the poor, especially as a religious duty
- almsman noun
- a man who lives on or is supported by charity (dated)
Commonly confused: alms or arms?
alms vs arms
Arms sounds nearly the same as alms in some accents, but it means limbs or weapons, not charity.
Practice
In which sentence is 'alms' used correctly?
Choose one answer.
Alms are gifts to the poor, so only the first sentence makes sense. The soldiers' sentence needs 'arms' (weapons) and the waving sentence also needs 'arms' (limbs), which are the commonly confused words.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “alms”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.