I. əˈfekshən also aˈ- noun
( -s )
Etymology: Middle English affeccioun, from Old French & Middle French affection, from Latin affection-, affectio, from affectus (past participle of afficere to exert an influence, bestow, apply oneself) + -ion-, -io -ion — more at affect
1. : any moderate feeling or emotion
that serene and blessed mood in which the affections gently lead us on — William Wordsworth
2. : kind feeling : tender attachment : love , good will
the young man warmly reciprocated her affection — Elinor Wylie
music played with affection and understanding — Irving Kolodin
you had some affection for him — George Meredith
— sometimes used in plural
he had been endowed with powerful family affections that were progressively frustrated — Allen Tate
the dearest object of their affections — H.T.Buckle
a powerful rival for the affections of the working class — J.G.Colton
3. obsolete
a. : a strong emotion or passion (as anger, fear, or hatred)
b. : partiality , prejudice
'tis the curse of service, preferment goes by letter and affection , and not by old gradation, where each second stood heir to the first — Shakespeare
4. psychology
a. : the feeling aspect of consciousness (as in pleasure, displeasure) — distinguished from conation ; compare cognition
b. : affect I 2
5.
a. : bent of mind : feeling or natural impulse swaying the mind : propensity , disposition , inclination
my lawyer is bound by all his affections to encourage me in litigation — G.B.Shaw
b. archaic : affectation 3, 4
they might discover themselves mock'd in these monstrous affections — Ben Jonson
Synonyms: see attachment , feeling
II. transitive verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
Etymology: Middle French affectionner, from affection, n.
: to have affection for : love
III. noun
( -s )
Etymology: Middle French, from Latin affection-, affectio
1. : action of affecting or state of being affected
the reciprocal affection of moving bodies
2.
a.
(1) : a bodily condition
(2) : disease , malady
a pulmonary affection
b.
(1) archaic : an alterable or nonessential state or mode of being
veins that produce an accidental affection of granite
(2) : attribute , property
shape and weight are affections of bodies
3. : umlaut I 1 — used especially in the grammar of the Celtic languages