affectation

[ af-ek-tey-shuhn ]
/ ˌæf ɛkˈteɪ ʃən /
SEE SYNONYMS FOR affectation ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

an effort to appear to have a quality not really or fully possessed; the pretense of actual possession: an affectation of interest in art; affectation of great wealth.
conspicuous artificiality of manner or appearance; effort to attract notice by pretense, assumption, or any assumed peculiarity.
a trait, action, or expression characterized by such artificiality: a man of a thousand affectations.
Obsolete.
  1. strenuous pursuit, desire, or aspiration.
  2. affection; fondness: his affectation of literature.

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advocate
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Origin of affectation

1540–50; < Latin affectātiōn- (stem of affectātiō) a striving after, equivalent to affectāt(us), past participle of affectāre to affect2 (see -ate1) + -iōn- -ion

SYNONYMS FOR affectation

2 pretension, airs, mannerisms, pose.
SEE SYNONYMS FOR affectation ON THESAURUS.COM

OTHER WORDS FROM affectation

non·af·fec·ta·tion, noun

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH affectation

affectation affection

Words nearby affectation

affaire d'amour, affaire d'honneur, affaire de coeur, affairs, affect, affectation, affected, affecting, affection, affectional, affectional orientation
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Words related to affectation

artificiality, show, pose, appearance, mannerism, simulation, insincerity, facade, pretentiousness, airs, imitation, pretension, front, put-on, air, pretense, sham

Example sentences from the Web for affectation

British Dictionary definitions for affectation

affectation
/ (ˌæfɛkˈteɪʃən) /

noun

an assumed manner of speech, dress, or behaviour, esp one that is intended to impress others
(often foll by of) deliberate pretence or false displayaffectation of nobility

Word Origin for affectation

C16: from Latin affectātiōn- an aiming at, striving after, from affectāre; see affect ²
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012