favor
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Pronunciation: ipa: /ˈfeɪ.və/
ipa: /ˈfeɪ.vɚ/
rhymes: -eɪvə(ɹ)
Forms: form: favors
form: favour
Etymology: From Middle English favour, favor, faver, from Anglo-Norman favour, from mainland Old French favor, from Latin favor (“good will; kindness; partiality”), from faveō (“to be kind to”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *bʰeh₂weh₁yeti (“to be favourable to”), from the root Proto-Indo-European *bʰeh₂- (“to shine, glow light”). Respelled in American English to more closely match its Latin etymon. Compare also Danish favør (“favor”), Irish fabhar (“favor”), from the same Romance source.
Senses: examples: text: He did me a favor when he took the time to drive me home.
synonyms: service
glosses: A kind or helpful deed; an instance of voluntarily assisting (someone).
examples: text: She enjoyed the queen's favor.
text: to fall out of favor
text: Then came a maid with hand-bag and shawls, and after her a tall young lady.[…]She looked around expectantly, and recognizing Mrs. Cooke's maid[…]Miss Thorn greeted her with a smile which greatly prepossessed us in her favor.
ref: 1897 December (indicated as 1898), Winston Churchill, chapter V, in The Celebrity: An Episode, New York, N.Y.: The Macmillan Company; London: Macmillan & Co., Ltd., →OCLC:
text: Samara: She confuses her victims, twists their feelings. They will do anything for her favor.
ref: 2010, BioWare, Mass Effect 2 (Science Fiction), Redwood City: Electronic Arts, →OCLC, PC, scene: Normandy SR-2:
glosses: Goodwill; benevolent regard.
examples: text: At the holiday dinner, the hosts had set a favor by each place setting.
text: A marriage favour is a bunch or knot of white ribbons or white flowers worn at a wedding.
text: Here, Fluellen; wear thou this favour for me and
stick it in thy cap: when Alencon and myself were
down together, I plucked this glove from his helm […]
ref: 1599 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Life of Henry the Fift”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act IV, scene vii]:
text: The rain drove into the bride and bridegroom's faces as they passed to the chariot. The postilions' favours draggled on their dripping jackets.
ref: 1847 January – 1848 July, William Makepeace Thackeray, chapter 22, in Vanity Fair […], London: Bradbury and Evans […], published 1848, →OCLC:
glosses: A small gift; a party favor.
examples: text: I could not discover the lenity and favour of this sentence.
ref: 1726 October 28, [Jonathan Swift], Travels into Several Remote Nations of the World. […] [Gulliver’s Travels], volume I, London: […] Benj[amin] Motte, […], →OCLC, part I (A Voyage to Lilliput):
glosses: Mildness or mitigation of punishment; lenity.
examples: text: All these his wondrous works, but chiefly man, / His chief delight and favour.
ref: 1667, John Milton, “Book III”, in Paradise Lost. […], London: […] [Samuel Simmons], and are to be sold by Peter Parker […]; [a]nd by Robert Boulter […]; [a]nd Matthias Walker, […], →OCLC; republished as Paradise Lost in Ten Books: […], London: Basil Montagu Pickering […], 1873, →OCLC:
glosses: The object of regard; person or thing favoured.
examples: text: This boy is fair, of female favour.
ref: c. 1598–1600 (date written), William Shakespeare, “As You Like It”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act IV, scene ii]:
glosses: Appearance; look; countenance; face.
topics: law
glosses: Partiality; bias
examples: text: I will now take some notice of your last favour; but being so far behind-hand with you, must be brief.
ref: 1748, [Samuel Richardson], “Letter LXVIII”, in Clarissa. Or, The History of a Young Lady: […], volume (please specify |volume=I to VII), London: […] S[amuel] Richardson; […], →OCLC:
glosses: A letter, a written communication.
glosses: A resemblance, likeness.
examples: text: James probably saw the family treasures, which included a little pair of gloves embroidered with pearls and the device of a lion, a lady's favour, said to have been taken from Harry Hotspur before the battle of Otterburn in 1388.
ref: 1977, K.M. Elizabeth Murray, Caught in the Web of Words, Oxford: Oxford University Press, page 13:
glosses: Anything worn publicly as a pledge of a woman's favor.
examples: text: The bride favors, or true love knots, ancient symbols of love, faith, and friendship, pointing out the indisssoluble tie of affection and duty, did not, as might be supposed, take their name of true love knots from the words "true" and "love,", but from the Danish verb "Trulofa," that is, "I plight my troth of faith." These knots were formerly distributed in great abundance; were worn in the hats by gentlemen, and consisted of variously colored ribbons, which were chosen by the bride and her maids, sometimes after long and serious discussions.
ref: 1853 May, E.R. Bowen, “Bride-Maids and Bride-Cake”, in Peterson's Magazine, volume 23, number 5, page 306:
text: Of all the new war cotillion favors yet devised there is hardly anything more novel than these. Aigrettes that are bunches of ribbons, red, white and blue, designed to be pinned in the hair at once, make up another favor.
ref: 1898, Melvin Ballou Gilbert, The Director - Volume 1, page 210:
text: Since the good news young folk—and old, too, for that matter—bedeck themselves with favors. Charms hand pendent from the watch chain, from neck pins.
ref: 1900, “From Abroad”, in The International, volume 8, page 415:
text: We can and should borrow choice items, such as bell pads, favors and flowered hats , which can easily be adapted […]
ref: 1991, Anthony G. Barrand, Six Fools and a Dancer: The Timeless Way of the Morris, page 178:
text: […] honor was bestowed upon the latter because he was the proud possessor of luxurious blond hair and had the most beautiful single curl tied with a ribbon. The lovelock was thereafter called a cadcnettc and the ribbon bowknots, favors.
ref: 2013, R. Turner Wilcox, The Mode in Hats and Headdress, page 109:
glosses: A ribbon or similar small item that is worn as an adornment, especially in celebration of an event.
Synonyms: aid
help
lending a hand
token
Derived terms: curry favor
every good boy deserves favor
fall out of favor
favor bank
favorite
grace and favor
in favor with
in favor → in favor of
in something's favor
kissing goes by favor
may the odds be ever in your favor
misfavor
not do someone any favors
out of favor
party favor
return the favor
sexual favor
unfavor
without fear or favor