Synonyms of predilection

predilection

noun

ˌpre-də-ˈlek-shən 

as in tendency

a habitual attraction to some activity or thing

a young lad with a predilection for telling tall tales

Synonyms & Similar Words

• tendency
• inclination
• aptitude
• devices
• affinity
• affection
• proclivity
• knack
• predisposition
• penchant
• propensity
• impulse
• disposition
• bias
• preference
• partiality
• talent
• bent
• addiction
• genius
• bone
• appetite
• habitude
• turn
• leaning
• gift
• prejudice
• flair
• fondness
• liking
• taste
• habit
• partisanship
• favor
• endowment
• like
• speciality
• faculty
• specialty
• idiosyncrasy
• practice
• fancy
• peculiarity
• one-sidedness
• forte
• eccentricity
• quirk
• pattern
• custom
• convention
• singularity
• wont
• way
• routine
• oddity
• trick
• kink

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• aversion
• dislike
• distaste
• disinclination
• allergy
• disfavor
• neutrality
• objectivity
• indifference
• detachment
• impartiality
• disliking
• averseness
• disrelish
• apathy
• nonchalance
• unconcern
• disinterestedness
• insouciance

Synonym Chooser

How does the noun predilection contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of predilection are bias, prejudice, and prepossession. While all these words 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

When could bias be used to replace predilection?

Although the words bias and predilection have much in common, bias implies an unreasoned and unfair distortion of judgment in favor of or against a person or thing.

a strong bias toward the plaintiff

When is it sensible to use prejudice instead of predilection?

The words prejudice and predilection can be used in similar contexts, but prejudice usually implies an unfavorable prepossession and connotes a feeling rooted in suspicion, fear, or intolerance.

a mindless prejudice against the unfamiliar

When can prepossession be used instead of predilection?

While the synonyms prepossession and predilection are close in meaning, prepossession suggests a fixed conception likely to preclude objective judgment of anything counter to it.

a prepossession against technology

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of predilection

Annie wondered if her predilection for Boy Talk had been living dormant in her body, the way chicken pox stayed quiet for decades and then bloomed into shingles. —Danielle Parker, CBS News, 14 Apr. 2026

Jude told me that his predilection for montage was influenced by Sergei Eisenstein, the Russian director. —Rebecca Mead, New Yorker, 13 Apr. 2026

And Americans’ predilection for nepo candidates doesn’t necessarily hold during periods of antiestablishment frustration. —Michelle Cottle, Mercury News, 9 Apr. 2026

Should baseball ever overcome its predilection for stuffing old men into polyester double-knits, the reversal would feel like a great loss. —Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 13 Mar. 2026

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