DictionaryRoot: -io
Latin

-io

an action, process, or result

Forms

  • -io
  • -ion- — The longer form used before Latin endings.
  • -ion — The form carried into many English nouns.

Origin

An old Latin noun ending, inherited from earlier Indo-European word formation.

Note

The ending can name both an activity and what that activity produces.

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noun

contribution

kahn-trih-BYOO-shuhn/ˌkɑːntrɪˈbjuːʃn/

A part supplied toward a larger effort or result.

Her contribution of fresh vegetables helps fill the shared food parcels.

A woman adds her bag of fresh vegetables to a shared food collection while a volunteer packs the pooled supplies into several matching food parcels.
Etymology

The pieces express the act of allotting or paying together. From the act of giving in common, the noun came to mean the thing given toward a common end.

In context

NPTEL IIT Bombay9:23
these are very fundamental studies which were done by Arulanandan and Smith. Then came the contribution by Topp. If you remember this is the equation given by Topp
Week 10-Lecture 45

More examples

  • His careful editing makes a valuable contribution to the report.
  • Small contributions from neighbors cover the cost of the garden.
  • The study measures traffic's contribution to air pollution.

Forms

contribution · contributions

contribute verb — To supply something toward a shared effort.

contributor noun — Someone who supplies something toward an effort.

Similar words

donation
Usually money or goods given freely, especially to a charity.
input
Emphasizes ideas, advice, or information supplied to an effort.