Gift

n. [A-S. gift, from gifan, to give; Goth. gifts, Ger. gift, f. and neut.] 1. Any thing given or bestowed; any piece of property which is voluntarily transferred by one person to another without compensation; a donation; a present; an offering; an oblation;—sometimes used in a bad sense, as any thing given to corrupt or bribe. Shall I receive by gift, what of my own I can command? Milton. Neither take a gift, for a gift doth blind the eyes of the wise. Deut. xvi. 19.

2. Some quality or endowment given to man by God; a pre-eminent and special talent or aptitude; power; faculty; as, the gift of wit; the gift of ridicule. Addison.
3. The act of giving or conferring. Milton.
4. Right or power of giving or bestowing. South.
5. (Law.) A voluntary transfer of real or personal property, from one to another, without any consideration. It can be perfected only by deed, or in case of personal property, by an actual delivery of possession. Bouvier. Burrill.

Syn.—Present; donation; grant; largess; benefaction; boon; bounty; gratuity; endowment; talent; faculty.—GIFT, PRESENT, DONATION. These words, as here compared, denote something gratuitously imparted to another out of one's property. A gift is usually from one who is in some respects a superior, and is designed for the relief or benefit of him who receives it. A present is ordinarily from an equal or inferior, and is always intended as a compliment or expression of kindness. Donation is a word of more dignity, denoting, properly, a gift of considerable value, and ordinarily a gift made either to some public institution, or to an individual on account of his services to the public; as, a donation to a college, a hospital, or a charitable society. But O, thou bounteous Giver of all good, Thou art of all thy gifts thyself the crown. Cowper. Say, heavenly muse, shall not thy sacred vein Afford a present to the infant God? Milton.