mutual affection
1
3.5
- noun
- /ˈmjuːtʃuəl əˈfɛkʃən/
:
afecto mutuo
- After years of working together, they developed a deep mutual affection for one another.
You know, a pact of mutual assistance, not by just fear, but by mutual affection, or you could even say mutual love, mutual amore, right?
- You know, a pact of mutual assistance, not by just fear, but by mutual affection, or you could even say mutual love, mutual amore, right?
Examples
-
They regarded each other with a mutual affection that clearly surprised them both.
Fiction book (1991) -
If this petite contretemps between royal mother and daughter did occur, it was set in a lifetime of deep mutual affection and support.
Blog text (18) -
They regarded each other with a mutual affection that made their friendship stronger.
-
The community's mutual affection during the charity event was evident as everyone came together to support the cause.
Synonyms
∞
1.0
A strong feeling of care and liking for someone or something
317
1.4
A gentle warm feeling for a person, animal, or thing
89
3.3
A strong feeling of liking and caring for someone or something
41
3.4
A gentle caring feeling of love and concern for someone
38
2.8
A strong warm liking for a person or thing
26
2.8
A warm emotional relationship between people who trust each other
22
3.4
A feeling of closeness and support between people
16
3.4
A strong feeling of love and respect for someone or something
3
3.1
A kind, caring feeling toward other people as if they were your brothers
1
7.8
A strong friendship and trust that makes people help each other
A feeling of love and care for other people or animals
Warm, kind feelings for a person or place
A feeling of kindness and affection toward someone
A kind and friendly feeling toward other people
Antonyms
How Affectionate
395
2.3
1
3.5
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'a feeling of fondness shared equally' is directly and compositionally derived from 'mutual' (shared/equal) + 'affection' (warm fondness), so a B1 learner who knows the constituent words can infer it. This adjective+noun construction uses literal senses without metaphorical shift and is cross-linguistically common, supporting immediate comprehension.
Etymology
The phrase mutual affection comes from the words mutual and affection. Mutual means 'shared by both people' and affection means 'a warm liking'. Imagine two people each giving a heart to the other, and that picture shows a feeling that goes both ways, so the phrase means 'a warm liking shared by both'.