affection

¹ American  

[uh-fek-shuhn] / əˈfɛk ʃən /

noun

1. fond attachment, devotion, or love.

   the affection of a parent for an only child.

   Synonyms:

   friendship, fondness, amity, friendliness, liking

   Antonyms:

   dislike

2. Often affections

   1. emotion; feeling; sentiment.

      over and above our reason and affections.

   2. the emotional realm of love.

      a place in his affections.

3. Pathology. a disease, or the condition of being diseased; abnormal state of body or mind.

   a gouty affection.

4. the act of affecting; act of influencing or acting upon.

5. the state of being affected.

6. Philosophy. a contingent, alterable, and accidental state or quality of being.

7. the affective aspect of a mental process.

8. bent or disposition of mind.

9. Obsolete. bias; prejudice.

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affection ² American  

[uh-fek-shuhn] / əˈfɛk ʃən /

noun

Obsolete.

1. affectation.

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affection British  

/ əˈfɛkʃən /

noun

1. a feeling of fondness or tenderness for a person or thing; attachment

2. (often plural) emotion, feeling, or sentiment

   to play on a person's affections

3. pathol any disease or pathological condition

4. psychol any form of mental functioning that involves emotion See also affect 1

5. the act of affecting or the state of being affected

6. archaic inclination or disposition

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Usage

What are other ways to say affection?

Affection refers to fond attachment, as of one person to another. How is affection different from love and devotion? Find out on Thesaurus.com.

Other Word Forms

• affectional adjective
• affectionless adjective

Etymology

Origin of affection¹

First recorded in 1200–50; Middle English, from Old French, from Latin affectiōn- (stem of affectiō ) “disposition or state of mind or body”; affect ¹, -ion

Origin of affection²

First recorded in 1525–35; affect ² + -ion

Example Sentences

But, privately, there has never been a great deal of mutual regard or affection.

From Los Angeles Times

Your father not only withheld that financial support and love and affection from your 9-year-old self, he also blocked the way for your stepfather to completely fulfill that role.

From MarketWatch

They have their ups and downs, but, with a little learning, the downs always lead to ups; the show treats them all with affection, as they treat each other.

From Los Angeles Times

"Real Madrid appreciates the unanimous support, backing, and affection that our player Vinicius Jr. has received from all areas of the global football community."

From Barron's

Soldiers fight, Chesterton says, because their cause is bound up with their affections for their family and fealty to their God.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• care
• closeness
• desire
• devotion
• emotion
• feeling
• friendship
• good will
• kindness
• love
• passion
• sentiment
• tenderness
• warmth