affinity

UK/əˈfɪnɪti/US/əˈfɪnɪti/

nounC1Occasional — familiar, but not everyday · #10,128 of 15,258leans written

Other forms: affinities

An affinity is a natural liking or a close likeness. An affinity with the place, an affinity for languages, a natural affinity.

It takes with or for. In chemistry it is precise: affinity is how strongly one substance tends to combine with another, and drug design is largely about it. In law, affinity is relationship by marriage as against blood.

Definitions of affinity

1nounaffinityA natural liking or a close likeness.C1
“She has always felt a strong affinity with animals, especially horses.”

affinity is a connection.

Where it comes from

Latin affinitas means relationship by marriage, from ad plus finis, a boundary — sharing a border.

Old French
affinité
Middle English
affinite
English, today
affinity

From Middle English affinite, from Old French affinité. Ostensibly equivalent to affine + ity. See also af-.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA

Practise this word

affinity in the wild

Chemical affinity can also refer to the tendency of an atom or compound to combine by chemical reaction with atoms or compounds of unlike composition.
Chemical affinity
The electron affinity is positive when energy is released on electron capture.
Electron affinity
In solid state physics, the electron affinity for a surface is defined somewhat differently.
Electron affinity
An affinity group is a group formed around a shared interest or common goal, to which individuals formally or informally belong.
Affinity group
Marriages and sexual relations between people in an affinity relationship are regarded as incest.
Affinity (Catholic canon law)

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From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. These sentences were written by other people about their own subjects; they are here to show the word at work, not as anybody’s opinion.

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