endowment

/ɪnˈdaʊmənt/ noun

Definition

› [C or U] SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY money that is given to a college, hospital, etc. in order to provide it with an income, or the giving of this money: an endowment for sth The Las Vegas millionaire pledged $10 million for the project and an endowment for the school. An endowment of $11.3 billion.

› [C] (also endowment assurance, endowment policy) INSURANCE a type of insurance in which you pay a regular amount of money over a particular period of time, or until you die, after which the insurance company pays an amount of money: We always aimed to ensure that customers understood that the eventual value of an endowment was not guaranteed. I was advised to take out an endowment.