infatuation

noun

in·​fat·​u·​a·​tion in-ˌfa-chə-ˈwā-shən 

-chü-ˈā-

plural infatuations

1

: a feeling of foolish or obsessively strong love for, admiration for, or interest in someone or something : strong and unreasoning attachment

She speaks openly about the real-life subject of one of her songs, a conservatory teacher who is both a neighbor in her apartment building and the unwilling object of her obsessive infatuation.

—Sasha Frere-Jones

Craig Claiborne wrote about it in 1963, when he was deep in his infatuation with dill and meatballs and all things Nordic.

—Amanda Hesser

2

: the object of an unreasoning or foolish attachment

And then, I began trying to forge their autographs. I'm not sure why I did it at first, but it became an infatuation.

—Zach Selwyn

Synonyms

• crush

Examples of infatuation in a Sentence

had a brief infatuation with the captain of the ski team

Recent Examples on the Web

When Denji first sees Reze’s face, the sun breaks through the clouds in a burst of light in a goofy but endearing metaphor for his instant infatuation. —Wilson Chapman, IndieWire, 22 Oct. 2025

Newsweek spoke with two psychological experts who described a noticeable decline in how often adults experience romantic infatuation—whether fleeting, intense or somewhere in-between. —Melissa Fleur Afshar, MSNBC Newsweek, 18 Oct. 2025

This is a record of warmth and passion, one that hangs on the conviction that nobody has ever felt so consumed by the dizzy, wild and blissed-out rush of infatuation. —Sophie Williams, Billboard, 10 Oct. 2025

For me, in books and in real life, a real romance—the sudden swoon, the infatuation, and the eventual love—just doesn’t happen without both a strong physical and intellectual attraction. —Emma Straub october 2, Literary Hub, 2 Oct. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1648, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing infatuation

• self-infatuation

Rhymes for infatuation

• abbreviation
• abomination
• acceleration
• accentuation
• accommodation
• accreditation
• acculturation
• accumulation
• acetylation
• adjudication
• administration
• adulteration