Fame is the state of being known by very large numbers of people. Rise to fame, seek fame, fame and fortune.
It is neutral about whether the reputation is good — for that, English has renown for the good and notoriety for the bad. Fixed phrases: fame and fortune, a claim to fame, the hall of fame, fifteen minutes of fame, from Andy Warhol. Note famous, the adjective; infamous, which means famous for something bad rather than not famous; and that fame is uncountable and takes no article.
1nounfameThe state of being known by very many people.
“Fame arrived at forty-one and was not what he expected.”
fame is a state of being known.
Latin fama meant talk, rumour or reputation, from fari, to speak — the same root as fable, fate and infant, which literally means one who cannot speak. Fame is what is said about you, which is a more accurate definition than the modern word suggests.
Latin
fāma
Old French
fame
Middle English
fame
English, today
fame
Built from
From Middle English fame, from Old French fame, from Latin fāma. From Middle English fame, from Old French fame (“celebrity, renown”), itself borrowed from Latin fāma (“talk, rumor, report, reputation”), from Proto-Indo-European bʰéh₂-meh₂, from bʰeh₂- (“to speak, say, tell”). Cognate with Ancient Greek φήμη (“talk”). Related also to Latin for (“speak, say”), Old English bōian (“to boast”), Old English bēn (“prayer, request”), Old English bannan (“to summon, command, proclaim”). More at ban. Displaced native hlīsa.
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA