Home UK English favourite

Meaning of favourite in English:

favourite

(US favorite)

Pronunciation /ˈfeɪv(ə)rɪt/

See synonyms for favourite

adjective

attributive

  • Preferred to all others of the same kind.

    ‘their favourite Italian restaurant’
    • ‘Do you play many games, and if so, do you have any favorite titles or preferred genres?’
    • ‘The same is true of my favourite pubs and restaurants: they tend to be places known only to locals.’
    • ‘It's one of my favourite restaurants, partly for the food but mainly for the atmosphere.’
    • ‘His favourite restaurant is minutes away, as is the park where he walks most days.’
    • ‘There are favourite haunts where the exercise enthusiasts gather to have a sip of hot tea.’
    • ‘Mourners are asked to wear something pink or a pink flower, as pink was Amanda's favourite colour.’
    • ‘On the scale of favourite things to do as a means of wasting time, online personality tests come out very near the top.’
    • ‘We'd already compiled our top five favourite things about Britain, and now we were on to New York.’
    • ‘But for me a lot of the fun of London is less about favourite places and more about favourite walks.’
    • ‘He had one favourite movie and he watched it more than a dozen times, sometimes on consecutive nights.’
    • ‘Like it or not, poker is America's new favorite pastime.’
    • ‘Take a wild guess as to what my least favorite movie of the 90's is.’
    • ‘I played dumb, as if it wasn't my most favorite song in the entire world.’
    • ‘When I think of my life, art stands out as one of my most favorite hobbies.’
    • ‘Have a least one favorite restaurant/bar/cafe where everybody knows your name.’
    • ‘I mean - our names are the title characters of one of my very favorite shows.’
    • ‘He was not about to forgo his search for knowledge or his favorite haunts.’
    • ‘I knew when I rented this place, this would be my favorite haunt.’
    • ‘Dinner will be guacamole and chips, also one of my very favorite things.’
    • ‘He did not ask for much this year, save for one favorite thing.’
    best-loved, most-liked, favoured, dearest, treasured, pet, special, closest to one's heart
    View synonyms

noun

  • 1A person or thing that is preferred to all others of the same kind or is especially well liked.

    ‘my favourite is tandoori chicken’
    • ‘the song is still a favourite after 20 years’
    • ‘you could always fall back on that old favourite, the omelette’
    • ‘Food vendors sell local favorites such as teriyaki chicken or beef stew with rice and macaroni salad.’
    • ‘When you have mulled over these questions and picked your favourites, you give money when and how you see fit.’
    • ‘I'll try to pick my three absolute favorites tomorrow and link to all the other ones that were good.’
    • ‘Pick your favorites and leave a comment directing us there, or link via trackback to your own post.’
    • ‘Pick your favorite out of the two, then ask for a sample to take home and try out.’
    • ‘He had asked them to sing their favourite songs, and the students would pick their favourites.’
    • ‘He was very well-liked by all his colleagues and was a favourite with visitors.’
    • ‘Although still a great hero and a favourite of the people, he acquires human faults and failings.’
    • ‘It's hard to pick a favourite but here are two that had me laughing out loud.’
    • ‘Participants were asked to rate each scenario on its merits, not to pick their favourite.’
    • ‘They did have chicken nuggets, served with those old favourites, chips and beans.’
    • ‘I'll use a phrase that has become a personal favorite: pushed beyond reason.’
    • ‘The page since became an all-time favorite with visitors to my site.’
    • ‘Perennial favorites include losing weight, exercising, quitting smoking and even cutting back on guilty pleasures like chocolate.’
    • ‘What types of games do you prefer, and are there any you consider your all-time favorites?’
    • ‘The enduring rose will always be with us and will continue to be the perennial favorite.’
    • ‘With a sizable stable of family and fans in the audience, she had to be considered the hometown favorite.’
    • ‘Fans of this closet cult favorite will of course want to buy the disc.’
    • ‘After all, it's a catalog title, and a cult favorite at best.’
    • ‘Other favorites include cracked corn, nuts (unsalted, please) and suet.’
    first choice, choice, pick, preference, pet, beloved, darling
    View synonyms
    1. 1.1The competitor thought most likely to win a game or contest, especially by people betting on the outcome.
      ‘the team are strong favourites’
      • ‘They will be strong favourites having won the last four meetings between the sides.’
      • ‘Britain's three-day eventers are strong favourites for Olympic gold this summer.’
      • ‘We have been used to Britain crews going to the Olympic Games as favourites.’
      • ‘Argentina are heavy favourites, having won all five of their games so far without conceding a goal.’
      • ‘Scotland, Japan and the US are the other teams in Group B which the French are strong favorites to win.’
      • ‘Both are favorites in their leagues, which could lead to a rematch in the Rose Bowl.’
      • ‘The trade did not make Dallas absolute favorites to win it all, but it made them better contenders.’
      • ‘That is not a criticism, because they obviously are the heavy favorites to win the Super Bowl.’
      • ‘The Broncos came in as slight favorites over a team with question marks at quarterback.’
      • ‘Indiana are the clear favorites to bring a championship back to the Eastern conference.’
      • ‘France, the United States and Germany are considered favourites for team medals.’
      • ‘They're on the road as a heavy favorite against a team that matches up well with them.’
      • ‘But watching that game it was hard to work out who were the favourites to go up at the end of the season.’
      • ‘Then he said England were favourites to win the competition because we had a world class team.’
      • ‘Raul, as much as anyone, will be devastated if the pre-match favourites do not win through.’
      • ‘No longer will I worry about favorites wrecking their seasons with three bad games.’
      • ‘They will start the game as favourites, but they won't want a repeat of what happened five years ago.’
      • ‘They have to be the odds-on favorite to win the Super Bowl now.’
      • ‘He was sent off as the favorite at odds of 2.45-to - 1.’
      • ‘They picked up four points to make them favourites to reach the semi-final along with York next month.’
      expected winner, probable winner, front runner
      View synonyms
    2. 1.2A record of the address of a website or other data made to enable quick access; a bookmark.
      ‘In terms of managing the list, keeping the list in any sort of order involves considerable effort in moving favourites into individual folders.’
      • ‘There are only a few { Web sites } I put in my favourites.’
      • ‘The Web Wheel gives you access to your browser, favorites or different Google search features.’
      • ‘Firstly, there is more space taken up by the favourites on screen, enabling a longer list of favourites without scrolling.’
      • ‘Instead of entering the search engine's URL or clicking on a favorite or bookmark, you just enter the query in the search box.’
      • ‘Depending on your Windows configuration, you may have more than 1 folder that contains favorites.’
      • ‘Also, frustratingly for those who use multiple machines, the list of favourites is tied to a particular machine.’
      • ‘It is also easy to forget to put something into the favourites.’
      • ‘For each item in the favourites list, a thumbnail of that Web page is inserted, along with the Web page name.’
      • ‘The favourites list also only keeps the name of the site in the list, making it difficult to differentiate between different sites quickly.’
      • ‘Both products save recently selected destinations and allow you to select destinations as favorites.’
      • ‘Repeat as necessary to add all the symbols you wish to your favorites list.’
      • ‘Frequently used items can be nicknamed and grouped, and marked as favorites.’
      • ‘The update for the media browser add-on for Web browsers added the ability to tag Web-based content as favorites.’
      • ‘The search function allows all the things you'd usually experience from heading over to Google without having to type in the address or click on a favourite.’
      • ‘Firstly, users have problems managing their favourites, and in particular accessing their favourites through a hierarchical menu.’
      • ‘The standard desktop options like favorites, commenting, playlists, related videos, rating and searching are also there.’
      • ‘Some users abandoned using favourites altogether and instead resorted to using the history mechanism of their browser.’

verb

[with object]

  • Record the address of (a website or other data) to enable quick access in future.

    ‘you can see who else favourited the same pictures’
    • ‘However, in terms of publicity, the video has already been viewed 673,641 times and been "favourited" by viewers 368 times.’
    • ‘YouTube, members decide which photographs and videos should rise to prominence by " favouriting ", linking and commenting.’
    • ‘Even better, you can see who else favourited the same pictures, and then look at thumbnails of all their favourites.’
    • ‘Adding a custom station for the first time took forever, and so did refreshing stations that I listened to often, favoriting and banning many songs.’

Phrases

    favourite son

    • 1A famous man who is particularly popular in his native area.

      ‘Essex's favourite son will open at Lord's to launch the cricket season’
      • ‘It was the work of a schoolgirl, then 13, who was so moved by the impending departure of the town's favourite son that she committed her thoughts to verse.’
      • ‘Yes, the favourite son of American liberalism is back in the news.’
      • ‘It is not meant to be disparaging of Oxford's favourite son.’
      • ‘The shadow thrown by Chicago's favourite son looms large, though.’
      • ‘I still get confused: was he Donegal's favourite son or was he from Cork?’
      • ‘What began as an advertisement for a kit manufacturer has subsequently become a monument to the city's favourite son.’
      • ‘He's the favorite son of the day, but he's not very exciting, is he?’
      • ‘I mean, he's still the favorite son here in Texas.’
      • ‘His adopted hometown of Santa Barbara actually welcomed back its favorite son with a parade this afternoon.’
      • ‘In the case of both, they are going to have to make the case that they are more than just the favorite son of their establishments.’
      1. 1.1US A person supported as a presidential candidate by delegates from the candidate's home state.
        ‘he hoped to strengthen his position as Maryland's favourite son’
        • ‘Upon the death of the Justice in 1851, he became New Hampshire's favorite son presidential candidate.’
        • ‘In 1880, he supported Ohio's favorite son, John Sherman, for the Republican presidential nomination, opposing a third term for Ulysses S. Grant.’
        • ‘In fact, the predecessor often chooses, endorses, or otherwise supports the favorite son as the most appropriate successor to pursue the course that he has established.’
        • ‘For that reason, the state's favorite son and unofficial leading candidate would take a pass.’
        • ‘And only one time since 1964 have they carried the South, and that, of course, was in '76 when Jimmy Carter was a favorite son.’
        • ‘Here in South Carolina, he's not in the lead, but he's breathing down the neck of the man who is, in effect, the favorite son.’
        • ‘He was first elected to the House from neighboring Missouri in 1976 and is considered a favorite son among many Iowa Democrats.’
        • ‘Texas casts all its votes for her favorite son and the best father in America.’

Origin

Late 16th century (as a noun): from obsolete French favorit, from Italian favorito, past participle of favorire ‘to favour’, from Latin favor (see favour).