DictionaryAI

favor

FAY-vur/ˈfeɪ.vɚ/UKFAY-vuh/ˈfeɪ.və/

Pluralfavors

Verbfavors, favoring, favored

UK spellingfavour

14 meanings of favor

Practice

  1. 1
    nouncountable
    A kind or helpful act done for someone of your own free will, without expecting payment in return.

    He asked his neighbor for a favor: a ride to the airport before dawn.

    Lending them the car was a big favor that they never forgot.

    UsageDo someone a favor (not incorrect: make a favor); ask someone a favor, and return the favor later.

    Similarservice

    Oppositedisservice

  2. 2
    verbtransitive
    To like or prefer one person, thing, or option over others, often shown by choosing or using it more than the alternatives.

    The committee favors proposals that create local jobs.

    Many teachers favor smaller class sizes for the closer attention they allow.

    UsageOften favor one thing over another, or passive: a hat favored by hunting men.

    Similarprefer, support

    Oppositeoppose, reject, dislike

    Note

    The passive carries much of this sense's weight. The angel's greeting in the King James Bible is "highly favoured," and Margery Allingham's The China Governess describes a low round hat "favoured by hunting men."

    Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 1 fact

    • Margery Allingham's The China Governess describes a low round hat as "favoured by hunting men." en.wiktionary.org
  3. 3
    approvalnoununcountable
    Goodwill or approving regard that one person or group shows toward another.

    The young artist enjoyed the favor of several wealthy patrons.

    Government policies that lose public favor rarely survive long.

    UsageFixed phrases: win someone's favor, fall out of favor with someone, speak in someone's favor.

    Similarapproval, support, goodwill, esteem, regard

    Oppositedisfavor, disapproval, hostility, displeasure

    Note

    In the American novelist Winston Churchill's The Celebrity (1898), the narrator says Miss Thorn's smile "greatly prepossessed us in her favor." The same regard is what people win, enjoy, curry or lose, and someone who falls out of favor has lost it.

  4. 4
    make likelyverbtransitive
    To encourage or contribute to a particular outcome; to make something more likely to occur.

    Dry conditions favor the rapid spread of wildfires.

    A flat course favors sprinters in the final stretch of the race.

    Similarencourage, promote, facilitate, aid, benefit

    Oppositehinder, impede, hamper, inhibit

  5. 5
    party giftnouncountable
    A small gift given to guests, especially at a celebration or party.

    Guests each received a small favor as they left the reception.

    She spent the afternoon wrapping party favors in ribbon.

    UsageUsually party favor or wedding favor.

    Similargift, giveaway, keepsake, token, memento

    Note

    Two customs meet in this word: the small gift left at each guest's place, and the token worn on the body. A marriage favor was a knot of white ribbons or flowers, and in Thackeray's Vanity Fair the postilions' wedding favors hang rain-soaked on their jackets, close kin to the celebratory ribbon.

    Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 4 facts

    • Guest favors may be placed at individual table settings. en.wikipedia.org
    • A marriage favor could consist of white ribbons or white flowers worn at a wedding. en.wiktionary.org
    • William Makepeace Thackeray wrote Vanity Fair. gutenberg.org
    • Vanity Fair describes the postilions' wedding favors trailing wet on their jackets. gutenberg.org
  6. 6
    noununcountable
    Partiality or bias toward one party, especially when fairness or impartiality is expected.

    The appeal alleged favor in how the contract had been awarded.

    Any sign of favor by the arbitrator can void the ruling.

    UsageSet phrase: without fear or favor, meaning impartially; also show favor to one side.

    Similarpartiality, bias, favoritism, prejudice, partisanship

    Oppositeimpartiality, fairness, neutrality, objectivity

    Note

    In a courtroom, the warmth of goodwill becomes a fault. In law, favor is partiality in someone meant to be impartial, such as a juror, an arbitrator, or an official awarding a contract. Showing it can be grounds for challenging the verdict, award or appointment. Here it names a quality, not an act: an appeal alleges favor, which keeps it distinct from the kind deed.

    Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 6 facts

    • Favor has a legal meaning of partiality or bias. en.wiktionary.org
    • Jurors must be impartial, and compromised impartiality can support a challenge to a trial's result. law.cornell.edu
    • Arbitrators have a duty of impartiality. legislation.gov.uk
    • Officials conducting public procurement are expected to act impartially. acquisition.gov
    • An arbitrator's partiality can be grounds for challenging an arbitration award. law.cornell.edu
    • An arbitrator's appointment can be challenged through an application for removal based on doubts about impartiality. supremecourt.uk

Practice

Can you tell the meanings of favor apart? Answer 3 quick questions from this page, or write your own sentence and AI will check it.

Origin

It comes from Middle English "favour," borrowed through Anglo-Norman and Old French "favor" from Latin "favor" (good will, kindness, partiality), which derives from "faveo" (to be kind to) and ultimately a Proto-Indo-European root. The American spelling was changed to more closely match its Latin source.

Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 4 facts

  • Favor comes from Middle English favour through Anglo-Norman and Old French, ultimately from Latin favor. en.wiktionary.org
  • Latin favor means good will, kindness, or partiality and derives from faveo, meaning to be kind to. en.wiktionary.org
  • The word ultimately has a Proto-Indo-European root; the particular root is disputed. en.wiktionary.org
  • The American spelling was altered to match the Latin form more closely. en.wiktionary.org