The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Endowment \En*dow"ment\, n.
   1. The act of bestowing a dower, fund, or permanent provision
      for support.
      [1913 Webster]

   2. That which is bestowed or settled on a person or an
      institution; property, fund, or revenue permanently
      appropriated to any object; as, the endowment of a church,
      a hospital, or a college.
      [1913 Webster]

   3. That which is given or bestowed upon the person or mind;
      gift of nature; accomplishment; natural capacity; talents;
      -- usually in the plural.
      [1913 Webster]

            His early endowments had fitted him for the work he
            was to do.                            --I. Taylor.
      [1913 Webster]

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006):

endowment
    n 1: natural abilities or qualities [syn: endowment, gift,
         talent, natural endowment]
    2: the capital that provides income for an institution [syn:
       endowment, endowment fund]
    3: the act of endowing with a permanent source of income; "his
       generous endowment of the laboratory came just in the nick of
       time"