affection

¹

[uh-fek-shuhn]

noun

1. fond attachment, devotion, or love.

   the affection of a parent for an only child.

   Synonyms: friendship, fondness, amity, friendliness, liking
   Antonyms: dislike

2. Often affections

   1. emotion; feeling; sentiment.

      over and above our reason and affections.

   2. the emotional realm of love.

      a place in his affections.

3. Pathology.,  a disease, or the condition of being diseased; abnormal state of body or mind.

   a gouty affection.

4. the act of affecting; act of influencing or acting upon.

5. the state of being affected.

6. Philosophy.,  a contingent, alterable, and accidental state or quality of being.

7. the affective aspect of a mental process.

8. bent or disposition of mind.

9. Obsolete.,  bias; prejudice.

affection

²

[uh-fek-shuhn]

noun

Obsolete.

1. affectation.

affection

/ əˈfɛkʃən /

noun

1. a feeling of fondness or tenderness for a person or thing; attachment

2. (often plural) emotion, feeling, or sentiment

   to play on a person's affections

3. pathol any disease or pathological condition

4. psychol any form of mental functioning that involves emotion See also affect 1

5. the act of affecting or the state of being affected

6. archaic,  inclination or disposition

Other Word Forms

• affectional adjective
• affectionless adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of affection¹

First recorded in 1200–50; Middle English, from Old French, from Latin affectiōn- (stem of affectiō ) “disposition or state of mind or body”; affect ¹, -ion

Origin of affection²

First recorded in 1525–35; affect ² + -ion

Word History and Origins

Origin of affection¹

C13: from Latin affectiōn- disposition, from afficere to _affect ¹

Example Sentences

I didn’t leave for lack of affection for the city.

From Los Angeles Times

Each are in their separate homes, but there’s a sense of convivial affection between them after playing Robert Crawley, the Earl of Grantham, and his eldest daughter, Lady Mary, for so long.

From Los Angeles Times

He also considered making Jack Sheppard, a petty thief who had won the public's affection, one of the main characters.

From BBC

The latter outweighed the former, because as our familiarity with this small galaxy of characters increased, so did our affection.

From Salon

"All our affection and solidarity with the families of the victims and with the Portuguese people in this difficult moment," he wrote in a statement on X.

From BBC

Related Words

• care 
• closeness 
• desire 
• devotion 
• emotion 
• feeling 
• friendship 
• good will www.thesaurus.com
• kindness 
• love 
• passion 
• sentiment 
• tenderness www.thesaurus.com
• warmth 

When To Use

What are other ways to say affection?

Affection refers to fond attachment, as of one person to another. How is affection different from love and devotion? Find out on Thesaurus.com.