favor

1 of 2

noun

fa·​vor ˈfā-vər 

1

a(1)

: friendly regard shown toward another especially by a superior

a politician attempting to keep the favor of the voters

(2)

: approving consideration or attention : approbation

looked with favor on the enterprise

b

: partiality

The students naturally showed favor toward their own team.

c

archaic : leniency

d

archaic : permission

e

: popularity

The fad lost favor quickly.

2

archaic

a

: appearance

b(1)

: face

(2)

: a facial feature

3

a

: gracious kindness

also : an act of such kindness

did you a favor

b

archaic : aid, assistance

c

favors plural : effort in one's behalf or interest : attention

vying for the king's favor

4

a

: a token of love (such as a ribbon) usually worn conspicuously

b

: a small gift or decorative item given out at a party

c

: badge

5

a

: a special privilege or right granted or conceded

granted a favor to a dear friend

b

: sexual privileges

—usually used in plural

6

archaic : letter

7

: behalf, interest

a man who acts only in his own favor

favor

2 of 2

verb

favored; favoring ˈfā-v(ə-)riŋ 

transitive verb

1

a

: to regard or treat with favor

b(1)

: to do a kindness for : oblige

(2)

: endow

c

: to treat gently or carefully

favored her injured leg

2

: to show partiality toward : prefer

3

a

: to give support or confirmation to : sustain

b

: to afford advantages for success to : facilitate

good weather favored the outing

4

: to bear a resemblance to

he favors his father

favorer

ˈfā-vər-ər 

noun

Phrases

in favor of

1

a

: in accord or sympathy with

b

: to the benefit of : in support of

a verdict in favor of the accused

2

: to the order of

3

: in order to choose : out of preference for

turned down the scholarship in favor of a pro career

in one's favor

1

: in one's good graces

wanted to get back in the teacher's favor

2

: to one's advantage

The judge ruled in our favor.

out of favor

: unpopular, disliked

Her ideas are now out of favor.

Synonyms

Noun

• benevolence
• boon
• courtesy
• grace
• indulgence
• kindness
• mercy
• service
• turn

Verb

• accommodate
• oblige

Examples of favor in a Sentence

Noun

I drove her to the airport because I owed her a favor.

She's willing to help you but only as a favor to me.

Don't do me any favors. I don't need your help.

I've learned to be grateful for small favors.

He's trying to earn the boss's favor by working late.

The judge showed favor for the defendant.

The students naturally showed favor toward their own school's team.

Small boxes of candy were given out as favors at the wedding.

Verb

The teacher clearly favors you.

Most voters favor these tax cuts.

Her father favored the idea of her going to law school.

They won the championship last year, and most forecasters favor them to win again this year.

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Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

The fact that the legislation is bipartisan is likely to work in its favor. —Sam Fortier, Washington Post, 13 Sep. 2023

Over the next 10 weeks, federal lawyers and state attorneys general will try to prove Google rigged the market in its favor by locking in its search engine as the default choice in a plethora of places and devices. —Paul Wiseman and Michael Liedtke, BostonGlobe.com, 12 Sep. 2023

Over the next 10 weeks, federal lawyers and state attorneys general will try to prove Google rigged the market in its favor by locking its search engine in as the default choice in a plethora of places and devices. —Paul Wiseman, Fortune, 12 Sep. 2023

That Trophy, given to the winner of the cross-town rivalry for the two Houston schools, went to the Owls after an instant classic 2OT matchup that ended 43-41 in Rice’s favor. —Selby Lopez, Dallas News, 12 Sep. 2023

The mistresses talk about the party as a labor of love, calling in favors from friends. —Jireh Deng, Los Angeles Times, 12 Sep. 2023

In the union’s favor is the current strong demand for cars and trucks, and near-record prices for new vehicles. —Chris Isidore, CNN, 11 Sep. 2023

But two years later, a jury ruled in her favor, and both Logans were granted their freedom. —Darcel Rockett, Chicago Tribune, 11 Sep. 2023

Worming his way into Felix’s good graces with compulsive lies and tactical favors, Oliver scores an invitation to spend the summer at Saltburn, the palatial countryside estate where Felix lives with his studiedly eccentric clan. —Justin Chang, Los Angeles Times, 1 Sep. 2023

Verb

After Google introduced its PageRank algorithm, which favored websites with lots of inbound links, spammers created entire ecosystems of mutually supporting pages. —Christopher Beam, WIRED, 14 Sep. 2023

Alabama and Clemson are each still favored to reach their conference championship game. —Randy Kennedy, al, 14 Sep. 2023

With any shades, Jensen favors thicker fabrics with tighter weaves to increase the insulation potential and minimize air circulation in the external fabric and the lining or backing. —Bridget Reed Morawski, Washington Post, 14 Sep. 2023

Read full article In opening statements, lawyers for the Justice Department and state attorneys general accused Google of making unfair deals to favor its search engine, such as paying Apple more than $10 billion a year to be the default on iPhones and Macintosh computers. —Aaron Pressman, BostonGlobe.com, 13 Sep. 2023

So there’s a lot of speculation going on here, but the current map, the legislative map for Ohio favors the Republicans in the house. —Laura Johnston, cleveland, 13 Sep. 2023

Texas returns to Austin as the only remaining undefeated team in the state and is favored by 27.5 points heading into its matchup this Saturday against Wyoming. —Jamie Hancock, Dallas News, 13 Sep. 2023

The war in Ukraine will rumble on exactly as if the language on the war had not been tweaked to favor the Russian position. —Walter Russell Mead, WSJ, 11 Sep. 2023

Culhane believes that the pace of building and renovation is too slow to address the problem, and favors rental assistance that individuals could use for apartment shares, or even to stay with family or friends. —Jennifer Egan, The New Yorker, 11 Sep. 2023

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Word History

Etymology

Noun and Verb

Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Latin, from favēre to be favorable; perhaps akin to Old High German gouma attention, Old Church Slavonic gověti to revere

First Known Use

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a(1)

Verb

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing favor

• come down in favor of
• come into favor
• come out in favor of
• do a favor for (someone)
• do (someone) a favor
• do oneself a favor
• in one's favor
• in someone's favor
• look with favor on
• the odds are in favor of (something)
• political favor
• return the favor
• all in favor
• party favor
• curry favor
• find approval/favor
• lose favor
• decide in favor of/for
• work in someone's favor
• fall from favor
• in favor
• stack the odds in someone's favor
• stack the odds in favor of (someone)
• odds are in (someone's) favor
• Do me a favor
• in favor of
• out of favor

See More

• come down in favor of
• come into favor
• come out in favor of
• do a favor for (someone)
• do (someone) a favor
• do oneself a favor
• in one's favor
• in someone's favor
• look with favor on
• the odds are in favor of (something)
• political favor
• return the favor
• all in favor
• party favor
• curry favor
• find approval/favor
• lose favor
• decide in favor of/for
• work in someone's favor
• fall from favor
• in favor
• stack the odds in someone's favor
• stack the odds in favor of (someone)
• odds are in (someone's) favor
• Do me a favor
• in favor of
• out of favor

See More

Kids Definition

favor

1 of 2 noun

fa·​vor ˈfā-vər 

1

a

: friendly regard shown toward another

enjoyed the favor of the king

b

: approval

look with favor on a project

c

: partiality sense 1, preference

the judge showed favor to one side

d

: the quality or state of being popular

lose favor

2

: an act of kindness

do a friend a favor

3

: a small gift given out at a party

favor

2 of 2 verb

favored; favoring ˈfāv-(ə-)riŋ 

1

a

: to look upon or treat with favor

b

: to do a kindness for : oblige

c

: to treat gently or carefully : spare

favor a sore leg

2

: prefer sense 1

3

: to make possible or easy : help to succeed

darkness favored the attack

4

: to look like : resemble

favors his mother

favorer

ˈfā-vər-ər 

noun

Legal Definition

favor

noun

fa·​vor

1

: bias

2

: benefit