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

Examples of infatuation in a Sentence

had a brief infatuation with the captain of the ski team

Recent Examples on the Web

In fact, research shows that romantic love without the obsessive intensity of early infatuation is not only possible in long-term relationships, but strongly associated with marital satisfaction, well-being and self-esteem. —Mark Travers, Forbes.com, 27 June 2025

Influential celebrities like Pamela Anderson and Kate Moss ended up wearing white sneakers casually throughout the ‘90s, with new companies and styles cropping up to satisfy the growing thirst for this versatile footwear — timeless enough to successfully transcend brief cultural infatuations. —Stacia Datskovska, Footwear News, 25 June 2025

Amid the coming-out balls, proposals and a whopper of a divorce scandal, a more insidious theme emerged: the rise of fascism in Europe, and two of the sisters’ infatuation with it. —Kimberly Roots, TVLine, 24 June 2025

There had been rumors of the front office and coaching staff's infatuation with the quarterback prior to draft night and leadership has done nothing to hide those feelings post-selection. —Justin Grasso, MSNBC Newsweek, 15 June 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