definitions

favorite son

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR favorite son ON THESAURUS.COM

noun U.S. Politics.

(at a national political convention) a candidate nominated for office by delegates from his or her own state.

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RELATED WORDS

applicant, competitor, nominee, contender, contestant, aspirant, successor, bidder, claimant, runner, hopeful, petitioner, possibility, seeker, entrant, suitor, pothunter, stumper, write-in, handshaker

Nearby words

favorable, favorance, favored, favoredly, favorite, favorite son, favoritism, favosite, favour, favourable, favourable pressure gradient

Origin of favorite son

An Americanism dating back to 1780–90
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

British Dictionary definitions for favorite son

favorite son

noun

(in the US) a politician popular in his home state but little admired beyond it
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

Culture definitions for favorite son

favorite son

A political figure nominated for the presidency by his or her state's delegation to the national nominating convention of a major party. Favorite sons are rarely serious candidates for the party's nomination. By nominating a favorite son, the delegation honors its nominee while delaying its commitment until the more serious contenders for the nomination can be sorted out.

The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Idioms and Phrases with favorite son

favorite son

A person valued by his or her hometown or organization for his or her achievements, usually political, as in Mary hoped they would treat her as a favorite son and nominate her for state senator. This term was originally employed for a candidate nominated for office by his own locality. Today this usage may ignore gender, as in the example. [c. 1780]

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.