fair-weather
Americanadjective
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used in or intended for fair weather only.
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weakening or failing in time of trouble.
His fair-weather friends left him when he lost his money.
adjective
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suitable for use in fair weather only
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not reliable or present in situations of hardship or difficulty (esp in the phrase fair-weather friend )
Etymology
Origin of fair-weather
First recorded in 1730–40
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Washington may be tempted to move its bases from the Persian Gulf region since many of them sustained substantial damage, and our Arab allies can be fair-weather friends.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 4, 2026
But Sunak gamely stuck it out, later commenting that he was "not a fair-weather politician" and confirming he'd be taking an umbrella on the campaign trail.
From BBC • Dec. 25, 2024
“I don’t know if I’d call her a fair-weather fan, but she doesn’t live and die with the team as I have,” he said.
From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 24, 2024
And, of course, there are always those fair-weather fans who pop up when their local team is succeeding.
From Seattle Times • Jan. 5, 2024
Chup led Frightful higher and higher, to the misty bottom of a fair-weather cumulus cloud.
From "Frightful's Mountain" by Jean Craighead George
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
