[am.a.teur] n, often attrib [F, fr. L amator lover, fr. amare to love] (1784) 1: devotee, admirer
2: one who engages in a pursuit, study, science, or sport as a pastime rather than as a profession
3: one lacking in experience and competence in an art or science -- am.a.teur.ish adj -- am.a.teur.ish.ly adv -- am.a.teur.ish.ness n -- am.a.teur.ism n syn amateur, dilettante, dabbler, tyro mean a person who follows a pursuit without attaining proficiency or professional status. amateur often applies to one practicing an art without mastery of its essentials "a painting obviously done by an amateur"; in sports it may also suggest not so much lack of skill but avoidance of direct remuneration "remained an amateur despite lucrative offers". dilettante may apply to the lover of an art rather than its skilled practitioner but usu. implies elegant trifling in the arts and an absence of serious commitment "had no patience for dilettantes". dabbler suggests desultory habits of work and lack of persistence "a dabbler who started novels but never finished them". tyro implies inexperience often combined with audacity with resulting crudeness or blundering "shows talent but is still a mere tyro".