favourite

/ ˈfeɪvrɪt; ˈfeɪvərɪt /

adjective

1. prenominal most liked; preferred above all others

noun

1. 1. a person or thing regarded with especial preference or liking
   2. ( as modifier )

      a favourite book

2. sport a competitor thought likely to win
3. pl computing a place on certain browsers that allows internet users to list the addresses of websites they find and like with a click of the mouse so that they can revisit them merely by opening the list and clicking on the address
4. play favourites
   play favourites to display favouritism

Word History and Origins

Origin of favourite¹

C16: from Italian favorito , from favorire to favour, from Latin favēre

Example Sentences

Much NLP research has switched to passages and rankingPassage retrieval and ranking has become one of the favourite areas of research over the past couple of years.

From Search Engine Land

The Black PrinceBy Iris Murdoch This is my favourite novel of all time and is structurally extremely (and successfully) ambitious.

From The Daily Beast

She had posed for me during the last three years, and among all my models she was my favourite.

From The Daily Beast

Fall asleep listening to a favourite love song as if you were singing it to yourself.

From The Daily Beast

She talks to Henry C. Krempels about her favourite haunts, why the city insipires her, and new writers not to be missed.

From The Daily Beast

What are your favourite works of literature that are set in Rome?

From The Daily Beast

Not suspecting her motive, he represented the hazard of putting so great an affront on the favourite of the Empress.

From Project Gutenberg

Four years ago Hetton's horse had been first favourite, but it was ignominiously beaten.

From Project Gutenberg

Magnums of the driest and most expensive champagne seemed to be the favourite beverage.

From Project Gutenberg

Later on, I believe, a child is wont to have his favourite colour, and to be ready to defend it against the preferences of others.

From Project Gutenberg

Hagley Road, on Sunday evenings, is particularly affected by some as their favourite promenade.

From Project Gutenberg