Love gift Man presents a cut of meat to a youth with a hoop. Athenian red-figure vase, ca. 460 BCE A gift or present is the transfer of something, without the need for compensation that is involved in trade. A gift is a voluntary act which does not require anything in return. Even though it involves possibly a social expectation of reciprocity, or a return in the form of prestige or power, a gift is meant to be free. In many human societies, the act of mutually exchanging money, goods, etc. may contribute to social cohesion. Economists have elaborated the economics of gift-giving into the notion of a gift economy. By extension the term gift can refer to anything that makes the other more happy or less sad, especially as a favour, including forgiveness and kindness (even when the other is not kind).