infatuation

noun

in·​fat·​u·​a·​tion in-ˌfa-chə-ˈwā-shən 

-chü-ˈā-

plural infatuations

1

: a feeling of foolish or obsessively strong love for, admiration for, or interest in someone or something : strong and unreasoning attachment

She speaks openly about the real-life subject of one of her songs, a conservatory teacher who is both a neighbor in her apartment building and the unwilling object of her obsessive infatuation.

—Sasha Frere-Jones

Craig Claiborne wrote about it in 1963, when he was deep in his infatuation with dill and meatballs and all things Nordic.

—Amanda Hesser

2

: the object of an unreasoning or foolish attachment

And then, I began trying to forge their autographs. I'm not sure why I did it at first, but it became an infatuation.

—Zach Selwyn

Synonyms

• crush
• mash
• passion

Examples of infatuation in a Sentence

had a brief infatuation with the captain of the ski team

Recent Examples on the Web

Admittedly, some of her infatuation is due to the sleek and stylish design. —Terri Williams, Architectural Digest, 18 Apr. 2025

But there is another aspect of this infatuation, which is the prince who looks at his land, Sicily, with the eyes of a lover. —Nick Vivarelli, Variety, 14 Apr. 2025

No one else would know that the crime infatuation is residing in your skull. —Lance Eliot, Forbes, 14 Mar. 2025

There’s also some chat about Sutton’s continued infatuation with Kyle and why that upsets Garcelle so much. —Brian Moylan, Vulture, 11 Mar. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1648, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing infatuation

• self-infatuation

Rhymes for infatuation

• abbreviation
• abomination
• acceleration
• accentuation
• accommodation
• accreditation
• acculturation
• accumulation
• acetylation
• adjudication
• administration
• adulteration