noun
bounty
A reward offered for an action, or a generous supply of something.
Where it comes from
Bounty ordinarily means a reward offered for an action, or a generous supply of something. Middle English bounte meant goodness or kindness. It came through Anglo-French bunte or bountee from Latin bonitas, goodness, itself formed from bonus, good. Goodness expressed through liberal giving produced the senses generosity and something generously supplied, including an abundant harvest.
How the meaning developed
A government payment offered as an inducement or reward was another kind of gift, leading eventually to a bounty for capturing an outlaw.
Sources
Definitions adapted from Open English WordNet where applicable. License and attribution. Word-history text comes from Lexifour’s sourced social research; pages are assembled automatically, not individually fact-checked on every update.
Updated 2026-10-05. Report a correction.