favorite
Americannoun
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favorites
plural
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a person or thing regarded with special favor or preference.
That song is an old favorite of mine.
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Sports. a competitor considered likely to win.
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a person or thing popular with the public.
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a person treated with special or undue favor by a king, official, etc..
favorites at the court.
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Digital Technology. bookmark.
adjective
Usage
Spelling tips for favorite The word favorite is hard to spell for two reasons. First, in British English it is spelled with a u (favourite), unlike the American English spelling favorite. Second, the final e is silent. How to spell favorite: When you do someone a favor, you don't do it for yourself. So, there is no u in favor. Now that we have the beginning of the word down, how do we remember the e in -ite? Well, it wouldn't be anything without an Ending (an e at the end). Put the two together and you get favorite.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of favorite
First recorded in 1575–85; from Middle French, from Italian favorito, “favored,” past participle of favorire “to favor, support,” from favore “favor, goodwill”; see favor, -ite 2
Explanation
Your favorite is what you like best. Your room is probably painted your favorite color, and the folders you carry to school are probably that color too. In a competition, the favorite is the one considered likely to win. If you bet on the favorite in a horse race, you're betting on the horse lots of other people think will win. The opposite of the favorite is the dark horse, or the underdog, or the long shot. You may have a favorite recipe, a favorite Web site, a favorite pastime, a favorite anything.
Vocabulary lists containing favorite
Cormac McCarthy's "The Road"
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"Crittercam to the Rescue"
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"I Remember"
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
LONDON—British tabloids could hardly contain their glee when news broke this week that one of their favorite targets—Prince Harry and Meghan Markle—would be returning to the U.K.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 21, 2026
So when the American Cinematheque recently invited Brooks to program a series of his favorite films — something he had never done before — there was no telling where his tastes might lead.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 21, 2026
And as each of their five full-length albums replaced their previous as my new favorite record, I’ve been consistently surprised that more people aren’t constantly talking about this band and how amazing they are.
From Salon ● Aug. 21, 2026
A crowd favorite, the 22-year-old sports the slogan “Dock It Like a Girl.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 21, 2026
“No,” Tansy said, “Alice’s favorite pet is a little green garter snake that lives in her purse.”
From "The Teacher’s Funeral" by Richard Peck
Defending champion Palisades and Taft, which lost to the Dolphins in the Open Division semifinals last fall, are the preseason favorites in the City Section.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 17, 2026
The two agree, the scene’s adapting to keep the favorites around, just in more refined settings.
From Salon ● Aug. 9, 2026
Starbucks is gearing up for a return of favorites such as pumpkin spice lattes in the fall and will begin testing sparkling beverages in a few markets, he said.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 29, 2026
I also asked readers to share their own favorites.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026
The kitchen table is covered with food—my favorites, potato salad, lemon meringue pie, pork chops.
From "Ghost Boys" by Jewell Parker Rhodes
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
