affection

¹

[uh-fek-shuhn]

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.

affection

²

[uh-fek-shuhn]

noun

Obsolete.

1. affectation.

affection

/ 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

Other Word Forms

• affectional adjective
• affectionless adjective

Word History and Origins

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

Word History and Origins

Origin of affection¹

C13: from Latin affectiōn- disposition, from afficere to _affect ¹

Example Sentences

The musician simply always loved the picture, but it does reflect his lingering affection for a scene that took him around the world and to the top of the music charts.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Sybil is positively brimming with love and affection for her children, with Keaton supplying a palpable maternal warmth that glows as softly as a string of Christmas lights.

Read more on Salon

Yet, that she made it at all makes every frame feel personal, and you hear her affection for the cadence of her occasionally tongue-tied subjects.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

His unconditional affection is a great reminder that my professional output isn’t the sum total of my value as a human being.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

At the festival, others shared their love and affection for Dame Jilly.

Read more on BBC

Related Words

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

When To Use

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.