predilection

pre·di·lec·tion

noun \ˌpre-də-ˈlek-shən, ˌprē-\

Definition of PREDILECTION

: an established preference for something

Examples of PREDILECTION

1. <a young lad with a predilection for telling tall tales>

Origin of PREDILECTION

French prédilection, from Medieval Latin praediligere to love more, prefer, from Latin prae- + diligere to love — more at diligent

First Known Use: 1742

Related to PREDILECTION

Synonyms: affection, affinity, aptitude, bent, bias, bone, devices, disposition, genius, habitude, impulse, leaning, partiality, penchant, inclination, predisposition, proclivity, propensity, tendency, turn

Related Words: favor, one-sidedness, partisanship, prejudice; endowment, faculty, flair, genius, gift, knack, talent; addiction, appetite, fancy, fondness, like, liking, preference, taste; forte, speciality, specialty; convention, custom, habit, pattern, practice (also practise), routine, trick, way, wont; eccentricity, idiosyncrasy, kink, oddity, peculiarity, quirk, singularity

Near Antonyms: allergy, averseness, aversion, disfavor, disinclination, dislike, disliking, disrelish, distaste; detachment, impartiality, neutrality, objectivity; apathy, disinterestedness, indifference, insouciance, nonchalance, unconcern

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Synonym Discussion of PREDILECTION

predilection, prepossession, prejudice, bias mean an attitude of mind that predisposes one to favor something. predilection implies a strong liking deriving from one's temperament or experience <a predilection for travel>. prepossession suggests a fixed conception likely to preclude objective judgment of anything counter to it <a prepossession against technology>. prejudice usually implies an unfavorable prepossession and connotes a feeling rooted in suspicion, fear, or intolerance <a mindless prejudice against the unfamiliar>. bias implies an unreasoned and unfair distortion of judgment in favor of or against a person or thing <a strong bias toward the plaintiff>.

Rhymes with PREDILECTION

by-election, circumspection, conic section, disaffection, disconnection, disinfection, fuel injection, genuflection, golden section, imperfection, indirection, insurrection, intellection, interjection, intersection, introjection, introspection, kin selection, misdirection, preselection, recollection, redirection, reelection, reinfection, resurrection, retroflexion, retrospection, self-reflection, stage direction, vivisection, yeast infection