aficionado
Americannoun
-
aficionados
plural
noun
-
an ardent supporter or devotee
a jazz aficionado
-
a devotee of bullfighting
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of aficionado
First recorded in 1835–45; from Spanish: literally, “amateur,” past participle -ado ( see -ate 1) of aficionar “to engender affection,” equivalent to afición affection 1 + -ar infinitive suffix
Explanation
If you really like something and make it your business to study up on its history and characteristics, you could be called an aficionado of that subject. This sort of funny-looking word might seem like it needs a second “f,” but it really doesn’t, and you should hold out on the temptation to add another one. (The single “f” spelling is a result of the word’s Spanish heritage.) The word aficionado implies serious study and fervent interest, but you can think of it as just a fancy way to say fan. You could call yourself a football aficionado, for example, if you think that sounds more impressive than just saying you’re a football fan.
Vocabulary lists containing aficionado
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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:
As I told that 50-something bitcoin aficionado, investing 100% of your retirement money into bitcoin leaves you concentrated in highly volatile assets.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 28, 2026
To the aficionado, however, it marked a milestone.
From Slate ● Sep. 17, 2026
Moreover, he’s a chess-playing, gourmet cooking, crime fiction aficionado and jazz lover equally comfortable on the mean streets of East Daygo and in the lush life of La Jolla Farms estates.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 26, 2026
It was that exact spirit of inquiry, within an article about the history of the doo-wop revival, that caught the attention of another doo-wop aficionado from South Jersey.
From Salon ● Jul. 29, 2026
Mary asked Helen, an aficionado of the outdoors, to take Janice trekking with a full backpack, first on Buckroe Beach, then up into Virginia’s Shenandoah mountains.
From "Hidden Figures" by Margot Lee Shetterly
ACOTAR, as it is known to aficionados, blends the swords-and-sorcery of fantasy epics like "Game of Thrones" with the smoldering romance familiar to readers of Danielle Steel.
From Barron's ● Oct. 23, 2026
Kao was an unusual figure among the company’s low-key naval engineers and boat aficionados.
From Salon ● Sep. 23, 2026
Tide aficionados are deeply loyal to the scent of the detergent, so that had to come through in the tiles.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 22, 2026
He went to bat for gummy aficionados during oral argument.
From Slate ● Jun. 18, 2026
Grandpa and Maddox discussed people Kendra did not know, other individuals involved in the secretive world of fairy aficionados.
From "Fablehaven" by Brandon Mull
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
