affair

noun

af·​fair ə-ˈfer 

1

a

affairs plural : commercial, professional, public, or personal business

handles the company's public affairs

an expert in foreign affairs

b

: matter, concern

How I choose to live is my affair, not yours.

2

: a procedure, action, or occasion only vaguely specified

also : an object or collection of objects only vaguely specified

Their house was a 2-story affair.

3

or less commonly affaire

a

: a romantic or passionate attachment typically of limited duration : liaison sense 2b

had an affair with a coworker

b

: a matter occasioning public anxiety, controversy, or scandal : case

the Watergate affair of the early 1970s

Synonyms of affair

• romance
• fling
• intrigue
• liaison

Examples of affair in a Sentence

After the war, the government focused on its own domestic affairs.

They accused the U.S. of interfering in the internal affairs of other nations.

How I choose to live is my affair, not yours.

adulterous affairs between married men and single women

Recent Examples on the Web

In one video, the artist interviews a public-affairs officer who had a mental break during Simon’s visit to a Department of Defense storage facility and threatened Simon and her team. — Emily Witt, New Yorker, 26 Sep. 2026

By contrast, the defense said a motive and an affair does not a case make. — Eric Levenson, CNN Money, 26 Sep. 2026

Intimate affairs and conversations around money matters could also intensify. — Valerie Mesa, PEOPLE, 26 Sep. 2026

In the space of a few paragraphs, Ned will abandon and recover his child, bungle an extramarital affair, win and lose, experience ecstasy and dejection. — Literary Hub, 24 Sep. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle English aferes "activities," affaire "enterprise," borrowed from Anglo-French afaire, affere "business, activity, enterprise, matter, topic, situation," from the phrase a faire "to do," from a "to" (going back to Latin ad) + faire "to do," going back to Latin facere — more at at entry 1, do entry 1

First Known Use

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

Phrases Containing affair

• love affair
• none of someone's affair/business

Rhymes for affair

• abwehr
• affaire
• airfare
• altair
• armchair
• aware
• beware
• bugbear
• carfare
• childcare
• compare
• cookware

Kids Definition

affair

noun

af·​fair ə-ˈfa(ə)r 

-ˈfe(ə)r

1

a

plural : commercial, professional, public, or personal business

government affairs

arranged my affairs before leaving

b

: concern entry 2 sense 1, matter

not your affair at all

2

a

: event sense 1b, activity

a social affair

b

: product sense 2, thing

the house was a two-story affair

3

: a brief romantic relationship