fondness
n.a feeling of liking or caring for someone or something. You often use this to describe a warm, long-lasting connection.
n.an affectionate liking or partiality for someone or something. Often implies a gentle, enduring emotional attachment rather than intense passion.
“She has a great fondness for old movies.”
“Over the years, his initial respect for his mentor grew into a deep personal fondness.”
“Despite the harsh winters of her childhood, she looked back on those years with a surprising degree of fondness and nostalgia.”
Commonly takes the preposition 'for' when identifying the object of affection.
“Les rosbifs “Roast beefs”; this French take is based on our fondness for a traditional Sunday roast.”
From Middle English fondnes, fondnesse, fonnednesse, equivalent to fond + -ness.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.