Meanings
comparative more public-spirited · superlative most public-spirited
- Having personal motivation toward the betterment of the public.
He was a noted philanthropist, and played a public-spirited part in the support of the Army during the Crimean War.
1960 March 28, N. Caplan, “The Railway Member of Parliament”, in Railway Magazine, page 2091 more example
For the young this device has proved most excellent under the wise management of the United Hebrew Charities, an organization that gathers to its work the best thought and effort of many of our most public-spirited citizens.
1890, Jacob A[ugust] Riis, “The Sweaters of Jewtown”, in How the Other Half Lives: Studies among the Tenements of New York, New York, N.Y.: Charles Scribner’s Sons, →OCLC, page 134Synonyms: public-hearted
Synonyms & antonyms
adjectiveHaving personal motivation toward the betterment of the public.
More synonyms by meaning
adjectiveshowing unselfish interest in the public welfare
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Translations
Hungarian önzetlen, a közjóért küzdő
- önzetlenhaving personal motivation toward the betterment of the public
- a közjóért küzdőhaving personal motivation toward the betterment of the public
Cite this entry
public-spirited. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/public-spirited
“public-spirited.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/public-spirited. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “public-spirited,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/public-spirited.
Source: public-spirited on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.