fair-weather fan
1
7.4
- noun
- /ˈfɛrˌwɛðər fæn/
- Informal
:
aficionado de clima favorable
- You are the definition of a fair-weather fan.
Examples
-
We love it when we're winning, but we're not fair-weather fans.
Blog text (13) -
And as a hardcore fan, I got nothing but love for fair-weather fans of any team.
Blog text (4) -
We don't need you fair-weather fans.
Blog text (16) -
I agree that fair-weather fans come out of the woodwork when they start doing well, but isn't that true for all teams in every sport?
Blog text (4) -
Many fans only show their support during winning seasons, proving they are just fair-weather fans.
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It's frustrating to see all the fair-weather fans cheering when our team is doing well but disappearing when we lose.
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The sports community often criticizes fair-weather fans who abandon their teams in tough times.
Antonyms
How Loyal
Surface Forms
Morphology
fair-weather + fan
The adjective 'fair-weather' is a metaphorical extension of 'fair' + 'weather' (literally nice conditions) to mean someone who is only present in good times; combined with 'fan' the meaning 'supporter only when the team is successful' is readily inferable. Because this requires recognizing a conventional metaphor rather than purely compositional meaning, it is not fully predictable for all B1 learners without some exposure, so it is best classified as semi-transparent.
Etymology
The term fair-weather fan may come from the image of a fan who only shows up when the weather is fair, in other words, only in 'good times'. So, calling someone a fair-weather fan means they support a team only when it is winning and stop supporting it during 'hard times'.