charities

Concise Oxford English Dictionary © 2008 Oxford University Press:
charity/ˈtʃarəti/

▶noun (pl. charities)

• 1 an organization set up to provide help and raise money for those in need.

• 2 the voluntary giving of money to those in need.

  ■ help or money given in this way.

• 3 tolerance in judging others.

• 4 archaic love of humankind, typically in a Christian context.

– origin OE: from OFr. charite, from L. caritas, from carus ‘dear’.