patron

Compared meaning: a person who gives money to support a cause (noun).

比较义项：出资支持某人或某项事业的人（名词）。

• patron 本词

  Patron suggests a generous, often wealthy individual who supports an artist, institution or cause personally, especially in the arts; it carries a warmer, more personal and traditional tone than sponsor.

  patron 强调慷慨（通常是富有）的个人以私人身份资助艺术家、机构或事业，尤其在艺术领域，语气比 sponsor 更温情、更传统。

  As a patron of the arts, she quietly paid the tuition for several music students.

  作为艺术赞助人，她悄悄为几名音乐学生支付了学费。

• sponsor

  Sponsor usually refers to a company, organization or individual that pays for a specific event, team or activity, often as a business or promotional arrangement, and can be either a person or an organization.

  sponsor 通常指为具体活动、团队或项目出资的公司、机构或个人，往往带有商业或宣传目的，可以是个人也可以是组织。

  A telecom company signed on as the official sponsor of the tennis tournament.

  一家电信公司成为了这场网球赛事的官方赞助商。

Patron and sponsor both mean someone who gives money to support something. Patron is a generous person who personally supports an artist or cause. Sponsor is usually a company paying for an event, often for business. This excludes patron meaning a regular customer.

这两个词都指出钱资助某人或某项事业的人，但语气和典型语境不同：patron 更强调个人以私人身份慷慨资助艺术家、机构或事业，语气较为正式、传统；sponsor 通常指以商业或宣传为目的、为具体活动或项目出资的公司或个人。这里不比较 patron 表示“顾客，老主顾”的意思。