Meaning of "volunteer" in the English dictionary

ETYMOLOGY OF THE WORD VOLUNTEER

From French volontaire, from Latin voluntārius willing.

Etymology is the study of the origin of words and their changes in structure and significance.

PRONUNCIATION OF VOLUNTEER

volunteer  [ˌvɒlənˈtɪə]

GRAMMATICAL CATEGORY OF VOLUNTEER

Volunteer is a verb and can also act as a noun.

A noun is a type of word the meaning of which determines reality. Nouns provide the names for all things: people, objects, sensations, feelings, etc.

The verb is the part of the sentence that is conjugated and expresses action and state of being.

See the conjugation of the verb volunteer in English.

WHAT DOES VOLUNTEER MEAN IN ENGLISH?

Volunteering

Volunteering is generally considered an altruistic activity and is intended to promote goodness or improve human quality of life. In return, this activity can produce a feeling of self-worth and respect. There is no financial gain involved for the individual. Volunteering is also renowned for skill development, socialization, and fun. It is also intended to make contacts for possible employment. It is helping, assisting, or serving another person or persons without pay. Many volunteers are specifically trained in the areas they work, such as medicine, education, or emergency rescue. Others serve on an as-needed basis, such as in response to a natural disaster.

Definition of volunteer in the English dictionary

The first definition of volunteer in the dictionary is a person who performs or offers to perform voluntary service. Other definition of volunteer is a person who freely undertakes military service, esp temporary or special service. Volunteer is also a person who does some act or enters into a transaction without being under any legal obligation to do so and without being promised any remuneration for his services.

CONJUGATION OF THE VERB TO VOLUNTEER

PRESENT

Present

I volunteer

you volunteer

he/she/it volunteers

we volunteer

you volunteer

they volunteer

Present continuous

I am volunteering

you are volunteering

he/she/it is volunteering

we are volunteering

you are volunteering

they are volunteering

Present perfect

I have volunteered

you have volunteered

he/she/it has volunteered

we have volunteered

you have volunteered

they have volunteered

Present perfect continuous

I have been volunteering

you have been volunteering

he/she/it has been volunteering

we have been volunteering

you have been volunteering

they have been volunteering

Present tense is used to refer to circumstances that exist at the present time or over a period that includes the present time. The present perfect refers to past events, although it can be considered to denote primarily the resulting present situation rather than the events themselves.

PAST

Past

I volunteered

you volunteered

he/she/it volunteered

we volunteered

you volunteered

they volunteered

Past continuous

I was volunteering

you were volunteering

he/she/it was volunteering

we were volunteering

you were volunteering

they were volunteering

Past perfect

I had volunteered

you had volunteered

he/she/it had volunteered

we had volunteered

you had volunteered

they had volunteered

Past perfect continuous

I had been volunteering

you had been volunteering

he/she/it had been volunteering

we had been volunteering

you had been volunteering

they had been volunteering

Past tense forms express circumstances existing at some time in the past,

FUTURE

Future

I will volunteer

you will volunteer

he/she/it will volunteer

we will volunteer

you will volunteer

they will volunteer

Future continuous

I will be volunteering

you will be volunteering

he/she/it will be volunteering

we will be volunteering

you will be volunteering

they will be volunteering

Future perfect

I will have volunteered

you will have volunteered

he/she/it will have volunteered

we will have volunteered

you will have volunteered

they will have volunteered

Future perfect continuous

I will have been volunteering

you will have been volunteering

he/she/it will have been volunteering

we will have been volunteering

you will have been volunteering

they will have been volunteering

The future is used to express circumstances that will occur at a later time.

CONDITIONAL

Conditional

I would volunteer

you would volunteer

he/she/it would volunteer

we would volunteer

you would volunteer

they would volunteer

Conditional continuous

I would be volunteering

you would be volunteering

he/she/it would be volunteering

we would be volunteering

you would be volunteering

they would be volunteering

Conditional perfect

I would have volunteer

you would have volunteer

he/she/it would have volunteer

we would have volunteer

you would have volunteer

they would have volunteer

Conditional perfect continuous

I would have been volunteering

you would have been volunteering

he/she/it would have been volunteering

we would have been volunteering

you would have been volunteering

they would have been volunteering

Conditional or "future-in-the-past" tense refers to hypothetical or possible actions.

IMPERATIVE

Imperative

you volunteer
we let´s volunteer
you volunteer

The imperative is used to form commands or requests.

NONFINITE VERB FORMS

Infinitive

to volunteer

Past participle

volunteered

Present Participle

volunteering

Infinitive shows the action beyond temporal perspective. The present participle or gerund shows the action during the session. The past participle shows the action after completion.

SYNONYMS OF «VOLUNTEER»

The following words have a similar or identical meaning as «volunteer» and belong to the same grammatical category.

synonyms of volunteer

advance · case · guinea pig · offer · participant · patient · propose · put forward · subject · suggest · tender · venture

TRANSLATION OF VOLUNTEER

Find out the translation of volunteer to 25 languages with our English multilingual translator.

The translations of volunteer from English to other languages presented in this section have been obtained through automatic statistical translation; where the essential translation unit is the word «volunteer» in English.

• Translator English - Chinese: 志愿者
• Translator English - Spanish: voluntario
• English: volunteer
• Translator English - Hindi: स्वयंसेवक
• Translator English - Arabic: مُتَطَوِّع
• Translator English - Russian: доброволец
• Translator English - Portuguese: voluntário
• Translator English - Bengali: স্বেচ্ছাসেবক
• Translator English - French: bénévole
• Translator English - Malay: Sukarelawan
• Translator English - German: Freiwilliger
• Translator English - Japanese: 志願者
• Translator English - Korean: 자원 봉사자
• Translator English - Javanese: Volunteer
• Translator English - Vietnamese: tình nguyện viên
• Translator English - Tamil: தன்னார்வ
• Translator English - Marathi: स्वयंसेवक
• Translator English - Turkish: gönüllü
• Translator English - Italian: volontario
• Translator English - Polish: ochotnik
• Translator English - Ukrainian: волонтер
• Translator English - Romanian: voluntar
• Translator English - Greek: εθελοντής
• Translator English - Afrikaans: vrywilliger
• Translator English - Swedish: frivillig
• Translator English - Norwegian: frivillig

10 QUOTES WITH «VOLUNTEER»

Famous quotes and sentences with the word volunteer.

1

Aldrich Ames

Foreign Ministry guys don't become agents. Party officials, the Foreign Ministry nerds, tend not to volunteer to Western intelligence agencies.

2

Gillian Anderson

Be of service. Whether you make yourself available to a friend or co-worker, or you make time every month to do volunteer work, there is nothing that harvests more of a feeling of empowerment than being of service to someone in need.

3

Michael Arad

When I was in the Army, the unit I served in, you could never stop. It was a volunteer unit, and there was a fairly high rate of attrition. The people who stayed through are the people who were either great at it or the people who just didn't know how to stop. And I fell into that second category.

4

Spencer Bachus

The Veteran's History Project, a nationwide volunteer effort to collect oral histories from America's war veterans, provides an avenue to do just that. Now in its fifth year, the Project has collected more than 40,000 individual stories.

5

Lance Burton

Harry Collins was the first magician I ever saw back in 1965 when I was five years old. He was doing a magic show and I was the volunteer from the audience.

6

Ron D. Burton

In the business world and the volunteer world, each job has certain requirements that must be met in order for that job to be done properly and for that organization to survive and prosper.

7

Julius Caesar

It is easier to find men who will volunteer to die, than to find those who are willing to endure pain with patience.

8

Ramsey Clark

I didn't volunteer; they asked me. I felt a duty to testify.

9

Josephus Daniels

So popular is the naval service the only embarrassment is that men volunteer so rapidly we have to work overtime to give them hardy, adequate housing and proper training.

10

Warren Farrell

Virtually every society that survived did so by socializing its sons to be disposable. Disposable in war; disposable in work. We need warriors and volunteer firefighters, so we label these men heroes.

10 ENGLISH BOOKS RELATING TO «VOLUNTEER»

Discover the use of volunteer in the following bibliographical selection. Books relating to volunteer and brief extracts from same to provide context of its use in English literature.

The Volunteer Traveler's Handbook

This editionNpart of the Traveler's Handbook seriesNguides new and veteran travelers through the challenges of finding, vetting, and choosing their ideal volunteer experience all over the world.

Shannon O'Donnell, 2012

Volunteer: A Traveller's Guide to Making a Difference Around ...

A travel guide for individuals who want to make a difference in the world looks at a wide variety of global volunteer opportunities, reviewing organizations and offering tips on choosing a location, selecting travel arrangements, ...

Charlotte Hindle, Nate Cavalieri, Rachel Collinson, 2007

The Volunteer Management Handbook: Leadership Strategies for ...

I strongly recommend this book to anyone concerned with starting, running, or improving a volunteer program." —David Horton Smith, PhD, Harvard University; Research and Emeritus Professor of Sociology, Boston College; Visiting Professor ...

Tracy D. Connors, 2011

Journeys of Discovery in Volunteer Tourism: International ...

Offers an insight into how volunteer tourism is growing and developing.

Kevin D. Lyons, Stephen Wearing, 2008

Volunteer Tourism: Experiences That Make a Difference

Volunteer tourism describes a field of tourism, in which travelers visit a destination and take part in projects in the local community.

Stephen Wearing, 2001

Challenges in Volunteer Management

The target audience for this volume is anyone who manages volunteers. The goal of the volume is to demonstrate the breadth of thought on volunteer management, both across disciplines and a wide range of settings in which volunteers work.

Matthew Allen Liao-Troth, 2008

Volunteer Tourism: Theoretical Frameworks and Practical ...

These themes are examined in a range of international case studies, demonstrating the wide range of issues associated with volunteer tourism. This volume is a timely addition offering an innovative approach to the area.

Angela M. Benson, 2011

Volunteer Training Drills: A Year of Weekly Drills

Section 1 begins with a one-year outline for training officers. Section 2 follows with a table of listings for each outline given in the book, indicating whether the drill is inside or outside and the preparation time needed for it.

Howard A. Chatterton, 1998

Volunteer Vacations: Short-Term Adventures That Will Benefit ...

For the increasing number of people looking for ways to make a difference while on vacation, this fully updated edition is filled with in-depth information to get them ready for their adventure, including contacts, locations, costs, dates, ...

Bill McMillon, Doug Cutchins, Anne Geissinger, 2009

A Leadership Guide for Volunteer Fire Departments

This is the text that truly prepares fire inspectors for the real world.

Jack W. Snook, Richard B. Gasaway, Tim L. Holman, 2009

10 NEWS ITEMS WHICH INCLUDE THE TERM «VOLUNTEER»

Find out what the national and international press are talking about and how the term volunteer is used in the context of the following news items.

Man attacks baby sea turtle nest, shoots volunteer in Florida

A convicted felon began attacking a turtle nest in Florida, which led volunteers to attempt to stop the man. One of the volunteers was shot with his own gun. «UPI.com, Jul 15»

Volunteer sheriff's deputy who shot unarmed suspect in April faces …

A former Oklahoma volunteer sheriff's deputy who fatally shot an unarmed man faces arraigned on a second-degree manslaughter charge. Former Tulsa County ... «Fox News, Jul 15»

Suspect who shot volunteer deputy near Ash Fork in custody

The Yavapai County Sheriff's Office confirmed that the man who shot one of its armed volunteers near Ash Fork Thursday evening has surrendered and is in ... «KPHO Phoenix, Jul 15»

Carnival to offer volunteer-centric cruise line that brings do-gooders …

On fathom, you and hundreds of fellow passengers take a one-week cruise during which you are trained as a volunteer. Once you get to your destination, you ... «New York Daily News, Jun 15»

Red Cross needs volunteers to help Central Texas flood victims

"When families across Texas need shelter, disaster relief and comfort, Red Cross volunteers are there to help them," said Marty McKellips, regional chief ... «KVUE, May 15»

Tulsa sheriff limits volunteers' duties after fatal shooting by 73-year …

Volunteer sheriff's deupty Robert Bates arrives for his arraignment on April 21 at the Tulsa County courthouse in Tulsa, Okla., in the fatal shooting of a suspect ... «Dallas Morning News, Apr 15»

Oklahoma top law-enforcement trainer: 73-year-old who mistook his …

He is working with lawmakers to require more training after 73-year-old insurance executive Robert Bates, a volunteer for the Tulsa County Sheriff's Office, said ... «Business Insider, Apr 15»

Tulsa Sheriff Defends Volunteer Deputy in Shooting

An Oklahoma sheriff expressed condolences Monday to the family of an unarmed man who was shot and killed by a volunteer reserve deputy, but continued to ... «New York Times, Apr 15»

View: Volunteer firefighters keep us safe

There are thousands of volunteer firefighters in New York State who stand ready, and these brave men and women are proud to help their fellow citizens in times ... «The Journal News | LoHud.com, Apr 15»

Volunteer Deputy Who Mistakenly Shot Man Releases Training …

Volunteer Deputy Who Mistakenly Shot Man Releases Training Records. More. Robert Bates says he fired his gun by mistake, thinking it was his Taser, killing ... «ABC News, Apr 15»