am·a·teur
Audio Help [am-uh-choo
r, -cher, -ter, am-uh-tur] Pronunciation Key
Audio Help [am-uh-choo
r, -cher, -ter, am-uh-tur] Pronunciation Key –noun
–adjective
| 1. | a person who engages in a study, sport, or other activity for pleasure rather than for financial benefit or professional reasons. Compare professional. |
| 2. | an athlete who has never competed for payment or for a monetary prize. |
| 3. | a person inexperienced or unskilled in a particular activity: Hunting lions is not for amateurs. |
| 4. | a person who admires something; devotee; fan: an amateur of the cinema. |
| 5. | characteristic of or engaged in by an amateur; nonprofessional: an amateur painter; amateur tennis. |
| Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006. |
amateur
To learn more about amateur visit Britannica.com
| © 2008 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. |
| am·a·teur
Audio Help (ām'ə-tûr', -tər, -chŏŏr', -chər, -tyŏŏr') Pronunciation Key
n.
adj.
[French, from Latin amātor, lover, from amāre, to love.] am'a·teur·ism n. Synonyms: These nouns mean one engaging in a pursuit but lacking professional skill: a musician who is a gifted amateur, not a professional; a dabbler in the stock market; a sculptor but a mere dilettante. |
| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. |
amateur
1784, "one who has a taste for (something)," from Fr. amateur "lover of," from O.Fr., from L. amatorem (nom. amator) "lover," from amatus, pp. of amare "to love" (see Amy). Meaning "dabbler" (as opposed to professional) is from 1786.
| Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper |
| amateur | |
adjective | |
| 1. | engaged in as a pastime; "an amateur painter"; "gained valuable experience in amateur theatricals"; "recreational golfers"; "reading matter that is both recreational and mentally stimulating"; "unpaid extras in the documentary" |
| 2. | lacking professional skill or expertise; "a very amateurish job"; "inexpert but conscientious efforts"; "an unskilled painting" [syn: amateurish] |
noun | |
| 1. | someone who pursues a study or sport as a pastime |
| 2. | an athlete who does not play for pay [ant: pro] |
| WordNet® 3.0, © 2006 by Princeton University. |
amateur1 [ˈӕmətə, (American) -tʃər] noun
a person who takes part in a sport etc without being paid for it
Example: The tennis tournament was open only to amateurs.
amateur2 [ˈӕmətə, (American) -tʃər] nounExample: The tennis tournament was open only to amateurs.
|
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
someone who does something for the love of it and not for money
Example: For an amateur, he was quite a good photographer.
amateur [ˈӕmətə, (American) -tʃər] adjectiveExample: For an amateur, he was quite a good photographer.
|
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Example: an amateur golfer; amateur photography
See also: amateurish
|
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary, © 2000-2006 K Dictionaries Ltd. |
Amateur
Am`a*teur"\, n. [F., fr. L. amator lover, fr. amare to love.] A person attached to a particular pursuit, study, or science as to music or painting; esp. one who cultivates any study or art, from taste or attachment, without pursuing it professionally.| Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc. |
AMATEUR
AMATEUR: in Acronym Finder
| Acronym Finder, © 1988-2007 Mountain Data Systems |
View results from: Dictionary | Thesaurus | Encyclopedia | All Reference | the Web
Perform a new search, or try your search for "amateur" at:
- Amazon.com - Shop for books, music and more
- Reference.com - Encyclopedia Search
- Reference.com - Web Search powered by Google
- Thesaurus.com - Search for synonyms and antonyms














