penchant

[pen-chuhnt, pahn-shahn]

noun

1. a strong inclination, taste, or liking for something.

   a penchant for outdoor sports.

penchant

/ ˈpɒŋʃɒŋ /

noun

1. a strong inclination or liking; bent or taste

Word History and Origins

Origin of penchant¹

1665–75; < French, noun use of present participle of pencher to incline, lean < Vulgar Latin *pendicāre, derivative of Latin pendēre to hang

Word History and Origins

Origin of penchant¹

C17: from French, from pencher to incline, from Latin pendēre to be suspended

Idioms and Phrases

see have a penchant for.

Example Sentences

The claim was swiftly derided by experts who said the main study cited by proponents of this theory was strewn with errors and it was yet another example of Kennedy's penchant for "pseudoscience."

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His penchant for long sentences and few paragraph breaks have also seen the writer labelled as "obsessive".

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As unlikely as the tour seemed on paper, Blur's penchant for storytelling about everyday British life - punctuated by some bouncy guitar-driven pop melodies - made them a perfect fit for a quintessential seaside jaunt.

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A group of scientists also took home the nutrition prize for their grounbreaking discovery that rainbow lizards in Togo have a penchant for four-cheese pizza over other toppings.

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Firstly, it would be the British boxing fraternity who would fall head over heels for an aggressive, forward-thinking fighter with a penchant for bending over opponents with air-sapping body shots.

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Related Words

• affection 
• affinity 
• predilection 
• proclivity 
• propensity 
• taste 
• tendency 
• weakness