amateur

[ am-uh-choor, -cher, -ter, am-uh-tur ]

/ ˈæm əˌtʃʊər, -tʃər, -tər, ˌæm əˈtɜr /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR amateur ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a person who engages in a study, sport, or other activity for pleasure rather than for financial benefit or professional reasons.Compare professional.

an athlete who has never competed for payment or for a monetary prize.

a person inexperienced or unskilled in a particular activity: Hunting lions is not for amateurs.

a person who admires something; devotee; fan: an amateur of the cinema.

adjective

characteristic of or engaged in by an amateur; nonprofessional: an amateur painter; amateur tennis.

Nearby words

amastia, amastigote, amata, amate, amaterasu, amateur, amateur night, amateurish, amateurism, amathi, amati

Origin of amateur

1775–85; < French, Middle French < Latin amātor lover, equivalent to amā- (stem of amāre to love) + -tor -tor, replaced by French -teur (< Latin -tōr-, oblique stem of -tor); see -eur

SYNONYMS FOR amateur

2 nonprofessional.

3 dilettante, tyro, novice.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR amateur ON THESAURUS.COM

Related forms

pro·am·a·teur, adjective

Can be confused

amateur armature

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for amateur

Thankfully, the Coleman kids reached a Burger King, and Wahlberg and his amateur biker gang rode off.
Mark Wahlberg’s Pardon Plea: A Look Back At His Troubling, Violent, and Racist Rap Sheet|Marlow Stern|December 7, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Sharp did lots of school plays, which led to a role in amateur operetta, then professional pantomime.
The Brit Who Stormed Broadway|Tim Teeman|December 7, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Today, though, professional and amateur historians can build counter-narratives that are hard to dismantle.
God vs. the Internet. And the Winner is…|Michael Schulson|November 16, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Chicago provides crime reporters and amateur scanner-chasers with more grit and brutality than they can handle combined.
Chicago’s Real-Life 'Nightcrawler'|Justin Glawe|November 14, 2014|DAILY BEAST

That frequency is within the range used by amateur radio operators, so anyone can listen in.
Luxembourg and China Team Up on Private Mission to the Moon|Matthew R. Francis|October 26, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Bud would never leave the old horse to that amateur's tender mercies, but he didn't intend to make it easy for the amateur.
A Voice in the Wilderness|Grace Livingston Hill
He was sitting beside me in the amateur roof-garden which Mr. Richards had contrived atop the settlement.
The Seven-Branched Candlestick|Gilbert W. (Gilbert Wolf) Gabriel
Remember this, Amateur, you'll never be too old to go to school, leastways that's what I've found.
An Amateur Fireman|James Otis
Of these varieties, the following are distinct, and possess many charming qualities that cannot fail to gratify the amateur.
Parsons on the Rose|Samuel Browne Parsons
Amateur theatricals were much less common in those days than at present, and were held as the ne plus ultra of gaiety.
Chantry House|Charlotte M. Yonge

British Dictionary definitions for amateur

amateur

/ (ˈæmətə, -tʃə, -ˌtjʊə, ˌæməˈtɜː) /

noun

a person who engages in an activity, esp a sport, as a pastime rather than professionally or for gain

an athlete or sportsman

a person unskilled in or having only a superficial knowledge of a subject or activity

a person who is fond of or admires something

(modifier) consisting of or for amateursan amateur event

adjective

amateurish; not professional or expertan amateur approach

Derived Forms

amateurism, noun

Word Origin for amateur

C18: from French, from Latin amātor lover, from amāre to love

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