affinity
- a natural liking for or attraction to a person, thing, idea, etc.
- a person, thing, idea, etc., for which such a natural liking or attraction is felt.
- relationship by marriage or by ties other than those of blood (distinguished from consanguinity).
- inherent likeness or agreement; close resemblance or connection.
- Biology. the phylogenetic relationship between two organisms or groups of organisms resulting in a resemblance in general plan or structure, or in the essential structural parts.
- Chemistry. the force by which atoms are held together in chemical compounds.
- of or relating to persons who share the same interests: to arrange charter flights for opera lovers and other affinity groups.
Origin of affinity
Synonyms for affinity
See more synonyms for on Thesaurus.comAntonyms for affinity
Related Words for affinity
weakness, closeness, rapport, sympathy, fondness, leaning, affection, resemblance, kinship, thing, partiality, attraction, compatibility, cotton, druthers, correspondence, similitude, semblance, likeness, relationshipExamples from the Web for affinity
Contemporary Examples of affinity
He can use that affinity to build confidence for a Jacksonian approach to world chaos.
That affinity has to come from somewhere besides just the entertainment value.
How did it come to be then that she would feel an affinity for Aurora and start to care for her?
The ‘Maleficent’ Screenwriter Also Wrote ‘The Lion King’ and ‘Beauty and the Beast’Kevin Fallon
June 1, 2014
Where does your affinity for long, tracking shots come from?
Alfonso Cuarón On ‘Gravity,’ Creationists, and Bonding with Sandra Bullock Over DivorceMarlow Stern
February 19, 2014
His most famous stories are about boxers and horse racing, but he had an affinity for football, too.
Historical Examples of affinity
Why Venus ever in her prime, but because of her affinity with me?
The Praise of FollyDesiderius Erasmus
He stared at it and the old feeling of affinity swept over him, stronger than ever.
The Big TomorrowPaul Lohrman
I never heard that he had the least affinity for either of these dissipations.
The First ViolinJessie Fothergill
A just government cannot be founded on force: for force has no affinity with justice.
Shelley, Godwin and Their CircleH. N. Brailsford
But let me ask you another question: Has excess of pleasure any affinity to temperance?
The RepublicPlato
affinity
- (foll by with or for) a natural liking, taste, or inclination towards a person or thing
- the person or thing so liked
- a close similarity in appearance or quality; inherent likeness
- relationship by marriage or by ties other than of blood, as by adoptionCompare consanguinity
- similarity in structure, form, etc, between different animals, plants, or languages
- chem
- the tendency for two substances to combine; chemical attraction
- a measure of the tendency of a chemical reaction to take place expressed in terms of the free energy changeSymbol: A
- biology a measure of the degree of interaction between two molecules, such as an antigen and antibody or a hormone and its receptor
Word Origin for affinity
Word Origin and History for affinity
c.1300, "relation by marriage" (as opposed to consanguinity), from Old French afinité (12c.), from Latin affinitatem (nominative affinitas) "neighborhood, relationship by marriage," noun of state from affinis "adjacent," also "kin by marriage," literally "bordering on," from ad- "to" (see ad-) + finis "a border, an end" (see finish). Used figuratively since c.1600 of structural relationships in chemistry, philology, etc. Meaning "natural attraction" (as though by family) is from 1610s.
affinity
(ə-fĭn′ĭ-tē)- An attraction or force between particles that causes them to combine.
- The attraction between an antigen and an antibody.
- A relationship or resemblance in structure between species that suggests a common origin.
- The selective staining of a tissue by a dye.
- The selective uptake of a dye, chemical, or other substance by a tissue.
affinity
- A relationship or resemblance in structure between species that suggests a common origin.
- An attraction or force between particles that causes them to combine, as the attraction between an antigen and an antibody.