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favor

noun · verb

Simple meaning

A kind or helpful deed.

Pronunciation

Say it like this:

fayver

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US device voice
IPA pronunciation (US)

ˈfeɪvɚ

This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.

IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.

Word Review

Definition

Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.

noun

  1. A kind or helpful deed; an instance of voluntarily assisting (someone).

  2. Souvenir consisting of a small gift given to a guest at a party

  3. A small gift; a party favor.

  4. Goodwill; benevolent regard.

  5. The object of regard; person or thing favoured.

  6. Mildness or mitigation of punishment; lenity.

verb

  1. To look upon fondly; to prefer.

  2. To use more often.

  3. in dialectsincluding Southern US and Cajun

    To resemble; especially, to look like (another person).

  4. Treat gently or carefully

  5. To treat or use (something) gently

  6. To encourage, conduce to

Word at a Glance

Difficulty
B1 · Intermediate
Frequency
Common
Typical Use
Everyday English

Word Aura™

How this word commonly comes across.

Aura for this meaning

This meaning: A kind or helpful deed; an instance of voluntarily assisting (someone).

Used this way, favor is a reasonably familiar word with a mildly favourable edge. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.

Emotional tone
Slightly positive
Formality
Neutral
Intensity
Moderate
How common
Moderately common
Connotation
Positive and appreciative
Usage feel
Neutral and straightforward

Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.

More ways to use favor

  • “He favors his second daughter.”verb
  • “The outcome was in his favor.”noun
  • “That style is in favor this season.”noun

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Common Patterns and Combinations

How this word naturally appears with others.

great favorfound favor

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Word Family

Related forms, grouped by how they connect.

Word family

Words built from the same root.

  • favorableadjectiveDerived adjective

    Encouraging or approving or pleasing.

  • favorablyadverbDerived adverb

    Showing approval.

Compound terms

Established multiword terms.

  • most-favored-nationadjectiveCompound term

    Of or relating to a commercial treaty where two nations agree to accord each other the same favorable terms that would be offered in treaties with any other nation.

  • party favornounCompound term

    Souvenir consisting of a small gift given to a guest at a party.

  • curry favorverbCompound term

    Seek favor by fawning or flattery.

  • court favorverbCompound term

    Seek favor by fawning or flattery.

Related words

Connected by subject or meaning, not by word formation.

  • favoritenounRelated term

    Something regarded with special favor or liking.

  • favorite sonnounRelated term

    A United States politician favored mainly in his or her home state.

More about this wordSynonyms, forms, origin

Synonyms

Sense: to look upon fondly

preferfavour

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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.