favor
English
Alternative forms
- favour (British, Canadian)
Etymology
From Anglo-Norman favour, from mainland Old French favor, from Latin favor, respelled in English to more closely match its Latin etymon.
Pronunciation
- (UK) IPA: /ˈfeɪvə(ɹ)/, X-SAMPA: /"feIv@(r\)/
- (US) IPA: /ˈfeɪvɚ/, X-SAMPA: /"feIv@`/
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Audio (US) (file) - Rhymes: -eɪvə(ɹ)
- Hyphenation: fa‧vor
Noun
favor (plural favors) (US, alternative in Canada)
- A deed; an instance of voluntarily assisting (someone).
- He did me a favor when he took the time to drive me home.
- Goodwill; benevolent regard.
- She enjoyed the queen's favor.
- A small gift; a party favor.
- At the holiday dinner, the hosts had set a favor by each place setting.
Usage notes
- Favor is the standard American spelling, and an alternative in Canada. Favour is the standard spelling outside North America.
- English speakers usually "do someone a favor" (rather than *"make them a favor", which would be sense 3 only). See Appendix:Collocations of do, have, make, and take for uses and meaning of favour collocated with these words.
Translations
a deed in which help is voluntarily provided
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goodwill; benevolent regard
A small gift
- The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Help:How to check translations.
Translations to be checked
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Derived terms
Verb
favor (third-person singular simple present favors, present participle favoring, simple past and past participle favored) (US, alternative in Canada)
- (transitive) To look upon fondly; to prefer.
- And the angel came in unto her, and said, Hail, thou that art highly favored, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women. —Luke 1:28, King James version, 1611
- (transitive) To do a favor [noun sense 1] for; to show beneficence toward.
- Would you favor us with a poetry reading?
- (transitive) To treat with care.
- Favoring your sore leg will only injure the other one.
- (transitive) To have a similar appearance, to look like another person.
- You favor your grandmother more than your mother.
Translations
To look upon fondly; to prefer
To do a favor (noun sense 1) for; to show beneficence toward
To treat with care
- The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Help:How to check translations.
Derived terms
- favorite (favourite)
- favoritism (favouritism)
- favorable (favourable)
- favored (favoured)
Latin
Etymology
From faveō (“I am well disposed or inclined toward, favor, countentance, befriend”).
Noun
favor (genitive favōris); m, third declension
Inflection
| Number | Singular | Plural |
|---|---|---|
| nominative | favor | favōrēs |
| genitive | favōris | favōrum |
| dative | favōrī | favōribus |
| accusative | favōrem | favōrēs |
| ablative | favōre | favōribus |
| vocative | favor | favōrēs |
Descendants
References
- favor in Charlton T. Lewis & Charles Short, A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1879
- favor in The Century Dictionary, The Century Co., New York, 1911
Portuguese
Etymology
From Latin favor (“favour; good will”), from faveō (“I favour”), from Proto-Indo-European *gʰoweh₁ (“to notice”).
Pronunciation
Noun
favor m (plural favores)
Synonyms
- (goodwill): favorança (obsolete), graça, mercê
Derived terms
- a favor de
- em favor de
- fazer o favor de
- por favor
Related terms
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Spanish
Etymology
From Latin favor, favoris.
Pronunciation
- IPA: /faˈβor/
- Hyphenation: fa‧vor
Noun
favor m (plural favores)