Dictionary
Thesaurus
Encyclopedia
Translator
Web
Related Searches
Synonyms
Nearby Words

dilettante

 - 4 dictionary results

dil⋅et⋅tante

  [dil-i-tahnt, dil-i-tahnt, -tahn-tey, -tan-tee] noun, plural -tantes, -tan⋅ti  [-tahn-tee] , adjective
Use dilettante in a Sentence
–noun
1. a person who takes up an art, activity, or subject merely for amusement, esp. in a desultory or superficial way; dabbler.
2. a lover of an art or science, esp. of a fine art.
–adjective
3. of or pertaining to dilettantes.
Origin:
1725–35; < It, n. use of prp. of dilettare < L dēlectāre to delight

Related forms:
dil⋅et⋅tan⋅tish, dil⋅et⋅tan⋅te⋅ish, adjective

Synonyms:
1. amateur.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To dilettante
dil·et·tante   (dĭl'ĭ-tänt', dĭl'ĭ-tänt', -tän'tē, -tānt', -tān'tē)   
n.   pl. dil·et·tantes also dil·et·tan·ti (-tän'tē, -tān'-)

  1. A dabbler in an art or a field of knowledge. See Synonyms at amateur.

  2. A lover of the fine arts; a connoisseur.

adj.  Superficial; amateurish.

[Italian, lover of the arts, from present participle of dilettare, to delight, from Latin dēlectāre; see delight.]
dil'et·tan'tish adj., dil'et·tan'tism n.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Cultural Dictionary

dilettante [(dil-uh-tahnt, dil-uh-tahnt)]

Someone who is interested in the fine arts as a spectator, not as a serious practitioner. Dilettante is most often used to mean a dabbler, someone with a broad but shallow attachment to any field.

The American Heritage® New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Word Origin & History

dilettante 
1733, borrowing of It. dilettante "lover of music or painting," from dilettare "to delight," from L. delectare (see delight). Originally without negative connotation, "devoted amateur," the pejorative sense emerged late 18c. by contrast with professional.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
Cite This Source
Search another word or see dilettante on Thesaurus | Reference
FacebookTwitterFollow us:
Partner Sites:
Ask AnswersEviteExpediaHotelsHotwireLife123LiveDailyMy Way