fond

¹ American  

[fond] / fɒnd /

adjective

fonder, fondest

1. having a liking or affection for (usually followed byof ).

   to be fond of animals.

2. loving; affectionate.

   to give someone a fond look.

3. excessively tender or overindulgent; doting.

   a fond parent.

4. cherished with strong or unreasoning feeling.

   to nourish fond hopes of becoming president.

5. Archaic. foolish or silly.

6. Archaic. foolishly credulous or trusting.

   Synonyms:

   gullible

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fond ² American  

[fond, fawn] / fɒnd, fɔ̃ /

noun

plural

fonds

1. a background or groundwork, especially of lace.

2. Obsolete. fund; stock.

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fond ¹ British  

/ fɒnd /

adjective

1. predisposed (to); having a liking (for)

2. loving; tender

   a fond embrace

3. indulgent; doting

   a fond mother

4. (of hopes, wishes, etc) cherished but unlikely to be realized

   he had fond hopes of starting his own business

5. archaic

   1. foolish

   2. credulous

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fond ² British  

/ fɔ̃, fɒnd /

noun

1. the background of a design, as in lace

2. obsolete fund; stock

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Other Word Forms

• fondly adverb
• fondness noun

Etymology

Origin of fond¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English fond, fonned “foolish, silly” (past participle of fonnen “to be foolish”

Origin of fond²

First recorded in 1655–65; from French; fund

Example Sentences

My wife is fond of recounting her effort to explain to our son, then in the sixth grade, that he needed to rework a first draft of a paper before submitting it.

From The Wall Street Journal

Kraft’s classic version still tasted good and brought back fond memories, Earle said, but it didn’t appear much healthier than it was when he worked there.

From The Wall Street Journal

"It was lovely to see England win at the MCG. I've got fond memories of sharing the moment with Josh in 2010."

From BBC

He has fond memories of jamming in jazz clubs with his musician friends.

From BBC

Somewhere along the way, in the years that followed, I grew fond of writing by hand—writing my thoughts, planning my study schedule and slowing down enough to think.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• affectionate
• enamored
• indulgent
• sentimental
• sympathetic