favourite
favourite — adjective
1. liked or enjoyed above all others in a group; your top choice when you compare s
liked or enjoyed above all others in a group; your top choice when you compare similar options, people, or activities.
Her favourite colour is blue, so she painted her bedroom walls a deep shade of it.
[possessive] + favourite + [noun] for personal preferences
Tariro read her favourite book, The Hobbit, aloud to her younger sister every evening.
Fish and chips is still the nation's favourite takeaway meal, even after all these years.
the + favourite + [noun] for group preferences
This old armchair is my favourite spot for reading on rainy Sunday afternoons.
Xiu always listens to her favourite podcast during the long bus ride to school.
- favourite colour
- favourite food
- favourite song
- favourite film
- favourite place
- favourite pastime
- preferred
more formal; suggests a deliberate choice among options rather than personal taste
- best-liked
more literal and less common in everyday speech
- dearest
stronger emotional tone; usually used for people or beloved possessions
- least-liked
the direct opposite in ranking terms
- hated
much stronger; not a neutral opposite
Grammar Patterns
[possessive] + favourite + [noun]
the + favourite + [noun]
Usage Note
Used directly before the noun it describes. In US English the spelling is 'favorite'.
Common Mistakes
2. used humorously or with irritation to refer to an unpleasant event, situation, o
used humorously or with irritation to refer to an unpleasant event, situation, or expression that you have experienced too many times and strongly dislike.
The washing machine broke again — just another fine mess, as my uncle's favourite saying goes.
ironic use: favourite = disliked because of over-familiarity
Vinícius muttered under his breath, 'Late trains — my favourite way to start the day.'
A sudden power cut during the match — one of Dad's favourite kinds of bad luck.
Maeve rolled her eyes. 'A flat tyre — my favourite end to a long week,' she said.
- favourite expression
- favourite saying
- favourite way to...
- favourite kind of...
- least favourite
the literal opposite; not ironic but expresses the same dislike directly
- favourite (sense 1)
the genuine positive meaning from which the ironic sense is inverted
Grammar Patterns
[possessive] + favourite + [noun] (meaning the opposite)
Usage Note
Used ironically to mean the opposite of sense 1 — something you strongly dislike because it causes repeated trouble or annoyance. Recognisable by the context or tone of voice. Common in informal British speech.
Common Mistakes
A person who is especially liked in the place where they come from.
The mayor is still Chicago's favourite son after winning the election.
Is the local singer considered the town's favourite son?
favourite — noun
1. the thing that you like more than any other of its type; the one you would pick
the thing that you like more than any other of its type; the one you would pick first if you had to choose.
Of all the songs on the album, 'Moon River' is my favourite by far.
[possessive] + favourite without a following noun
Chocolate ice cream was little Marta's favourite, and she asked for it every Sunday after lunch.
Niran said his favourite from the menu is the lamb curry with rice and papadums.
The librarian asked each child to bring their favourite to show and tell on Friday morning.
Among the paintings in the gallery, the seascape was clearly the crowd's favourite that evening.
- personal favourite
- all-time favourite
- old favourite
- clear favourite
- first choice
less emotional; focuses on decision rather than personal attachment
- preference
more formal; can apply to any selection among options
- pick
informal; often used in casual voting or choosing contexts
- least favourite
the item at the bottom of your personal ranking
Grammar Patterns
[possessive] + favourite
the + favourite
Usage Note
Unlike the adjective form, this noun does not sit before another noun. It stands alone and usually follows a possessive (my favourite, her favourite) or 'the'.
Common Mistakes
2. someone who receives better treatment than others from an authority figure, ofte
someone who receives better treatment than others from an authority figure, often in a way that feels unfair to the rest of the group.
The coach's favourite always starts every match, even when others have trained harder all week.
[possessive] + favourite referring to a favoured person
The manager clearly had his favourites on the sales team, which upset the others.
Aylin tried not to play favourites, but everyone knew Luca was her favourite student.
The other children whispered that Sivan was the teacher's favourite who never got told off.
Imani suspected that the promotion went to the boss's favourite rather than the most qualified candidate.
- teacher's favourite
- boss's favourite
- manager's favourite
- obvious favourite
- pet
informal; often used among children or in workplace gossip
- teacher's pet
specific to school settings; always disapproving
- blue-eyed boy
British informal; refers to a male who is unfairly favoured
Grammar Patterns
[possessive] + favourite
the + favourite
Usage Note
Often carries a critical or disapproving tone, suggesting that the special treatment is unfair to others. The uncountable noun 'favouritism' describes this practice.
Common Mistakes
3. the person, team, or animal considered most likely to come first in a contest, e
the person, team, or animal considered most likely to come first in a contest, election, or sporting event by the public, judges, or bookmakers.
The horse was the clear favourite but finished third, well behind the outsider.
the favourite + to + [verb] for probability of winning
Despite being the underdog, the young player beat the tournament favourite in straight sets.
Joaquín's team went into the final as hot favourites after winning every match that season.
hot favourite / clear favourite / strong favourite — common adjectives
Bookmakers have made her the early favourite for gold at the next Olympic Games.
The Labour candidate was favourite to win the seat, according to local opinion polls.
- clear favourite
- hot favourite
- strong favourite
- early favourite
- narrow favourite
- favourite to win
- front-runner
focuses on being ahead in a competition, not necessarily in betting odds
- top contender
suggests the person is among the best competitors, not necessarily the single most likely winner
- odds-on favourite
more specific; used in gambling contexts to mean the bet is highly likely to pay out
Grammar Patterns
the + favourite + to + [verb]
a + [adjective] + favourite
Usage Note
Commonly paired with adjectives like 'clear', 'hot', 'strong', 'early', 'narrow'. The opposite term is 'underdog' (the one expected to lose). In betting contexts, the favourite has the shortest odds.
Common Mistakes
4. a website address or online file that you save on your computer, phone, or table
a website address or online file that you save on your computer, phone, or tablet so you can open it again quickly without typing the full link.
Christopher added the recipe page to his favourites so he could find it again easily.
saved to [possessive] + favourites — computing context
You can organise your favourites into folders by topic, such as travel, recipes, or news sites.
I lost all my saved favourites when my laptop crashed last week.
Élise keeps a folder of favourites for design blogs that she checks every morning at work.
You can import your favourites from another computer when you set up a new device.
- add to favourites
- save to favourites
- my favourites
- favourites folder
- import favourites
- organise favourites
- bookmark
the more universal term across browsers and devices; 'favourites' is the term used by Microsoft and some social media platforms
Grammar Patterns
[possessive] + favourites
add/save to + favourites
Usage Note
Almost always used in the plural ('favourites') when referring to the collection of saved pages. In US English, spelled 'favorites' and often appears in browser menu bars as 'Bookmarks' or 'Favorites'. The verb form is 'to favourite a page'.
Common Mistakes
favourite — verb
1. to save the web address of a site, page, photo, or social-media post on your pho
to save the web address of a site, page, photo, or social-media post on your phone or computer, allowing you to open it again later with a single click.
Arjun favourited the online store so he could check for new items each week without searching.
favourite + [noun] — active transitive use
You can favourite a tweet by tapping the heart icon that appears below the message.
favourite a post — common on social media platforms
Favourite this page before you close the tab, or you will lose the address.
Esme always favourited the travel blog posts that had useful tips about cheap accommodation.
The app lets you favourite a recipe and then find it later under your saved collection.
- favourite a post
- favourite a page
- favourite a tweet
- favourite a recipe
- favourite a photo
Grammar Patterns
favourite + [noun phrase (web page / post / file)]
Usage Note
This use as a verb is relatively recent and most common on social-media platforms (Twitter/X, Facebook, Pinterest) and in web browsers. In US English, it is spelled 'favorite'. Some platforms use 'like' or 'bookmark' instead.
Common Mistakes
Word family
- favournounB1
- favourverbB1
- favourableadjectiveB2
- favourablyadverbB2
- favouritismnounC1
Synonym discussion
Sense: adjective/1
'Favourite' is personal and subjective — it refers to what one individual likes more than anything else in a category, regardless of what others think ('My favourite film is a little-known French documentary'). 'Popular', by contrast, describes what many people like ('That film was very popular at the box office'). Something can be your favourite without being widely popular, and vice versa. 'Preferred' is more neutral and often tied to a specific choice or context ('I prefer tea to coffee right now'); it does not carry the emotional attachment of 'favourite'. In everyday use: you tell a friend your favourite restaurant (a personal, lasting opinion), but you might say you preferred one dish over another at a single meal (a situational choice).
Common collocations
Nouns
- favourite colour
- favourite food
- favourite song
- favourite book
- favourite film
- favourite place
- favourite pastime
Adverbs
- particularly favourite
- especially favourite
- absolutely favourite
Phrases
- old favourite
- favourite son
- favourite pastime
- favourite haunt
Prepositions
- favourite among
- favourite with
- favourite of
Etymology
The word 'favourite' entered English in the late 1500s from French 'favorit', which came from Italian 'favorito' (past participle of 'favorire' — to show favour to). The Italian word traces back to Latin 'favor' (goodwill, support). Originally a noun meaning 'a person who is favoured', it later developed the adjective sense 'most liked' and, in modern computing, the verb sense 'to bookmark'.