affinityn.

Brit.

/əˈfɪnᵻti/, U.S.

/əˈfɪnᵻdi/

Forms: Middle English afenitye, Middle English affenyte, Middle English affynytee, Middle English afinite, Middle English afinytie, Middle English afynyte, Middle English–1500s affinite, Middle English–1500s affinitee, Middle English–1500s affinyte, Middle English–1500s affynite, Middle English–1500s affynitie, Middle English–1500s affynyte, Middle English–1500s offynyte, 1500s affinitye, 1500s affinyty, 1500s affinytye, 1500s affynytie, 1500s affynyty, 1500s affynytye, 1500s–1600s affinitie, 1500s– affinity; Scottish pre-1700 affinite, pre-1700 affinitee, pre-1700 affinitie, pre-1700 affynete, pre-1700 affynnete, pre-1700 affynyte, pre-1700 1700s– affinity.

Origin: Of multiple origins. Partly a borrowing from French. Partly a borrowing from Latin. Etymons: French affinité; Latin affīnitāt-, affīnitās.

Etymology: < (i) Anglo-Norman afineté, Anglo-Norman and Middle French affinité, Middle French afinité (French affinité ) neighbouring region (1160), relationship by marriage (c1260), relationship between people based on common ground in their characters, tastes, etc. (1283), similarity, resemblance (1286), family, kin (beginning of the 14th cent. or earlier), any relationship other than by marriage (1309 or earlier), friendly relationship between people (c1355), spiritual connection between godparents and godchild (early 15th cent.), structural resemblance between different animals, plants, or minerals (1538); and its etymon (ii) classical Latin affīnitāt-, affīnitās relationship by marriage, family or group related to a person by marriage, connection, in post-classical Latin also neighbourhood, adjacency (from 10th cent. in British sources) < affīnis affine adj. + -tās (see -ty suffix¹; compare -ity suffix). Compare Old Occitan afinitat (c1420), Catalan afinitat (15th cent.), Spanish afinidad (1437), Portuguese afinidade (15th cent. as †affinidade), Italian affinità (c1350).With the specific use in chemistry in sense 8 compare French affinité (1762 in this sense), and also post-classical Latin use of classical Latin affīnitās (c1250 in a similar use (in an alchemy context) in Albertus Magnus). Compare also elective affinity and elective attraction (for both, see elective adj.). Sense 9 probably shows a semantic development of sense 7. It may have been popularized by the English translation of Goethe's novel Die Wahlverwandtschaften (1809; compare quot. 1854 at sense 9); Goethe's use shows a learned pun on the scientific use (of the equivalent German term Wahlverwandtschaft ) in sense 8.

I. Senses relating to connection, and to the forming of connections.

a. Relationship by marriage (as distinguished from relationship by blood); kinship between people or families that results from marriage; (also in early use) †ties between families or their members that result from a sexual encounter out of wedlock (obsolete). Also: an instance of this. Opposed to consanguinity n. 1a.Often in the context of the prohibition or annulment of marriages to a relative by affinity: see table of (kindred and) affinity at table n. Phrases 6.

ΘΚΠ

society > society and the community > kinship or relationship > [noun] > relationship by marriage

affinitya1325

match1574

in-lawry1894

in-lawship1954

a1325 Statutes of Realm in MS Rawl. B.520 f. 80^v Ȝif þe schirreue of þe stude were, of his lignee ore þoru ani affinite, ateinaunt to þilke askare or partable in his askinge.

c1350 (a1333) William of Shoreham Poems (1902) 68 Ȝef þou..bi-treuþy hy nauȝt—And hast flesches mone, By lawe Alle here sybbe affinite To þe for þan schel drawe.

a1400 (c1303) R. Mannyng Handlyng Synne (Harl.) l. 7378 Or ȝyf he with a woman synne Þat sum of hys kyn..haþ ley here by..He calleþ hyt an affynyte.

1484 W. Caxton tr. G. de la Tour-Landry Bk. Knight of Tower (1971) lxi. 87 Be he of his parente, his affynte or other.

1509 J. Fisher Mornynge Remembraunce Countesse of Rychemonde (de Worde) sig. Aiv What by lygnage what by affinite she had .xxx. kinges & quenes within y^e .iiii. degre of maryage vnto her.

a1586 R. Maitland Advyce to Kyndnes in W. A. Craigie Maitland Folio MS (1919) I. c. 315 Neirnes of blude nor ȝit affinite.

1647 N. Bacon Hist. Disc. Govt. lv. 157 Many..that by affinity and consanguinity were become Englishmen.

1660 Bp. J. Taylor Ductor Dubitantium I. ii. ii. 303 Affinity makes conjunctions and relations equal to those of Consanguinity.

1726 J. Ayliffe Parergon Juris Canonici Anglicani 326 Affinity is a Civil Bond of Persons, that are ally'd unto each other by Marriage or Espousals.

1765 W. Blackstone Comm. Laws Eng. I. xv. 434 Of this nature are pre-contract; consanguinity, or relation by blood; and affinity, or relation by marriage.

1849 T. B. Macaulay Hist. Eng. I. 172 He was closely related by affinity to the royal house. His daughter had become, by a secret marriage, Duchess of York.

1899 G. Smith United Kingdom: Polit. Hist. I. xvi. 318 The dissolution of marriages with liberty of marrying again on pretended grounds of affinity or precontract had been common.

1906 N. W. Thomas Kinship Organizations & Group Marriage Austral. i. 7 Considerations of affinity, the relations set up by marriage, do not affect the status of the parties, so far as the legality of marriage is concerned.

1956 W. S. Churchill Hist. Eng.-speaking Peoples II. iv. iv. 38 He summoned Henry to appear before him, charged with having married his deceased brother's wife within the degrees of affinity prohibited by the laws of the Church.

1985 Daily Tel. 10 Dec. 8/6 The prospect that inroads may be made into the laws which stand in the way of marriages between those related by affinity was opened up in the Lords yesterday.

2007 Jrnl. Anthropol. Res. 63 56 Women formed a core to which men were attached, either by ascent and descent or by affinity.

†b. A family or group related to a person by marriage; (individually) a relative by marriage. Obsolete.

ΘΚΠ

society > society and the community > kinship or relationship > relations or kindred > [noun] > relations of wife or husband

affinityc1405

people-in-law1894

c1405 (c1390) G. Chaucer Parson's Tale (Ellesmere) (1877) §907 The fourthe spece [of adultery] is the assemblee of hem that been of hire kynrede or of hem that been of oon affynytee.

c1475 (?c1451) Bk. Noblesse (Royal) (1860) 6 (MED) Affinitees, frendis, subgectis, allies, and alle wellewilleris.

1533 T. More Debellacyon Salem & Bizance i. v. f. xxxiii^v I haue none affinitye..eyther by gossepred or by maryage.

1690 tr. G. Buchanan Hist. Scotl. x. 354 What if that Affinity were as honourable to the Father, as the Son in Law?

†a. A family or group related to a person by blood; a kindred; (individually) a blood relative. Also in extended use. Obsolete (rare after 17th cent.).

ΘΚΠ

society > society and the community > kinship or relationship > relations or kindred > [noun]

kinc825

sibOE

kindredOE

sibness?a1300

kindc1325

affinity1357

cousinagea1382

cognationc1384

kinhoodc1440

kinsfolkc1450

evenkina1500

relation1502

kindsfolk1555

folks1715

cousinhood1748

loved onea1756

parentage1768

concerns1818

belonging1842

cousinry1844

cousinship1865

kinspeople1866

kinfolk1873

J. Gaytryge Lay Folks' Catech. (York Min.) (1901) l. 556 His sib frend, Or any othir that is of his affinite, Gastely or bodili.

c1425 J. Lydgate Troyyes Bk. (Augustus A.iv) i. l. 128 (MED) He made a resygnacion To his brother, next heyr by degre, And next allye of his affinite.

1450 in C. L. Kingsford Eng. Hist. Lit. 15th Cent. (1913) 360 (MED) Þat he woll voyde all the false progeny and afynyte of the Duke of Southefolke.

a1475 J. Shirley Death James (BL Add. 5467) in Miscellanea Scotica (1818) II. 7 With many other of thare afinite.

a1513 R. Fabyan New Cronycles Eng. & Fraunce (1516) I. lxx. f. xxv^v He therfore with helpe of his affynyte and frendes withstode the Romaynes.

1548 Hall's Vnion: Henry VIII f. xxxvj Then sodainly was ther in y^e counsaill, a vauntparler, a botcher which heryng this, called a great nomber of his affinitie & went out of the counsayll.

1602 W. Warner Epitome Hist. Eng. in Albions Eng. (rev. ed.) 388 Much was this distraction of Regalitie from Richard the second enuied by those of his Lyne and Affinitie.

1654 tr. M. Martini Bellum Tartaricum 141 All the Generals, Commanders and Souldiers, were either of his affinity, or wholy at his Command and Obedience.

1911 R. W. Chambers Common Law 310 And 'round and 'round the little mutts all run,..Wagging and nosing—see! beneath yon tree One little mutt meets his affinity!

b. Relationship by blood, consanguinity; common ancestry of individuals, races, etc.; an instance of this.

ΘΚΠ

society > society and the community > kinship or relationship > [noun]

sibOE

kindredOE

sibredlOE

sibnessa1250

sib-lawc1275

kindheadc1325

cousinagec1350

kinheada1375

affinitya1382

kindnessc1390

parentelec1390

parentelac1415

parentage1548

relation1561

cousinship1570

connatenessa1652

relationship1724

kindredship1733

connection1773

familyhood1808

kindredness1826

kinsmanship1842

a1382 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Bodl. 959) (1963) Ruth iii. 13 If he wile takyn þee bi riȝt of affynytee [L. propinquitatis jure; a1425 L.V. bi riȝt of nyȝ kyn]: þe thyng is weel don.

1581 J. Bell tr. W. Haddon & J. Foxe Against Jerome Osorius iii. f. 395^v Neither Christes philosophye doth acknowledge or regard carnall Fathers, Sonnes, affinities, and kinreddes.

1677 T. Gale Court of Gentiles: Pt. IV i. i. ix. 47 The great Identitie, or at least, Affinitie that was betwixt the old Britains, and Gauls.

1712 S. Centlivre Perplex'd Lovers iv. 36 Cousins may couple for all their Affinity.

1766 O. Goldsmith Vicar of Wakefield I. i. 3 Our cousins too, even to the fortieth remove, all remembered their affinity, without any help from the Heralds' office.

1794 G. Adams Lect. Nat. & Exper. Philos. III. xxxii. 364 The labour of individuals..weaves into one web the affinity and brotherhood of mankind.

1826 Greek Lexicon Schrevelius 321/1 To marry a woman, especially a brother's widow, by right of affinity.

1872 J. Yeats Growth Commerce 37 The affinities of the people which connected them..with the Semitic races of Arabia.

1902 Pop. Sci. Monthly Mar. 455 The racial affinities of this primitive people are somewhat doubtful, though they are in all probability derived from Negro stock.

1960 C. Day Lewis Buried Day i. 17 Ducal affinities..have never given me quite the satisfaction I get from imagining that..I may have been distantly related to William Butler Yeats.

1982 R. Littlewood & M. Lipsedge Aliens & Alienists ii. 51 If skin colour is emphasized, the tribal Japanese Ainu are placed in the same group as the European, while blood groups suggest an affinity between Indians and Hungarian gipsies.

2004 H. E. Winter Hist. Celts xvii. 157 Recent blood group investigation suggest [sic] a closer affinity with the Celts in Ireland and Scotland than with the Scandinavians.

3. Chiefly Roman Catholic Church. The state of being spiritually linked as a result of sponsoring a child at baptism or confirmation; spiritual connection between godparents and godchild (or his or her parents), or between the godparents themselves; an instance of this. Now usually in spiritual affinity. Also in early use: †a person or group of people having this type of connection (obsolete). Cf. gossipred n. 1a.The concept of spiritual affinity is no longer an element of Roman Catholicism, but remains a feature of certain other forms of Christianity, such as the Orthodox Church.

ΘΚΠ

society > faith > worship > sacrament > baptism > [noun] > spiritual relation of participants

gossipredc1315

affinity1357

gossiphood1506

cognationa1575

society > society and the community > kinship or relationship > kinsman or relation > parent > parenthood > [noun] > relation of godparents or child

gossipredc1315

affinity1357

gossipry?1548

gossipship1572

cognationa1575

J. Gaytryge Lay Folks' Catech. (York Min.) (1901) l. 556 His sib frend, Or any othir that is of his affinite, Gastely or bodili.

1533 T. More Debellacyon Salem & Bizance i. v. f. xxxiii^v I haue none affinitye..eyther by gossepred or by maryage.

1592 J. Throckmorton Petition most Excellent Maiestie 33 There is such affinitie betweene the Godfather and the childe..that it hindereth mariage.

1612 J. Davies Discouerie Causes Ireland 180 The like may be said of Gossipred or Compaternitie, which though by the Canon Law, it be a spirituall affinity.

1683 J. Bulteel tr. F. E. de Mézeray Gen. Chronol. Hist. France 116 Christians..established the degrees of Spiritual Affinity between the Godfather and Godmother.

1728 E. Chambers Cycl. (at cited word) The Romanists talk of a spiritual Affinity, contracted by the Sacrament of Baptism and Confirmation.

1837 Brit. Mag. & Monthly Rev. Aug. 139 That spiritual affinity which the church of Rome supposes to be contracted between sponsors.

1866 E. A. Freeman in Fortn. Rev. May 654 Æthelwald purposely asks the King to become godfather to the child, in order that he might thereby contract a spiritual affinity with the mother.

1907 P. Deming Story of Pathfinder 176 He said that he did not like the midnight baptism, the spiritual affinity, the doctrines of Perfectionism, or the excitement about the end of the world.

1908 New Schaff-Herzog Encycl. Relig. Knowl. I. 446/2 The institution of sponsors was retained, with infant baptism, by the Evangelical Churches at the Reformation... The notion of spiritual affinity was dropped.

1978 P. K. Jewett Infant Baptism & Covenant of Grace (1980) 179 They [sc. the parents] were rendered unworthy of so godly an affinity with the child born of their carnal union.

2010 G. Chapple tr. M. Mitterauer Why Europe? iii. 88 Islam..does not have baptism, hence no baptismal sponsorship or any sacramental forms of spiritual affinity modeled on it.

4. The state of being closely connected or mutually dependent; an instance or example of this; a link, a connection. Also: something which is connected to or accompanies something else.

ΘΚΠ

the world > relative properties > relationship > correlation > [noun] > mutuality or reciprocity

affinitya1398

reciprocation1546

mutualitya1586

mutualness1620

intermutualness1628

reciprocality1653

reciprocalness1657

reciprocity1753

reciprocy1803

commutuality1812

interdependence1822

interdependency1838

symbiosis1921

a1398 J. Trevisa tr. Bartholomaeus Anglicus De Proprietatibus Rerum (BL Add. 27944) (1975) II. xviii. xxxii. 1180 Þer is so gret affinite bitwen houes, clees, and hornes.

a1400 tr. Lanfranc Sci. Cirurgie (Ashm.) (1894) 152 (MED) If þat ony of þe veynes organik..be kutt, it is drede of sodeyn deeþ..for affinite of þe herte.

c1454 R. Pecock Folewer to Donet 95 (MED) Þer is an affynyte and neiȝborehode and a knytting togidere of oure soul to þe bodi.

1540 R. Morison tr. J. L. Vives Introd. Wysedome (new ed.) C iiij Vyces and their affynities, as foolyshnes, ignorancy, amased dulnesse.

1579 G. Fenton tr. F. Guicciardini Hist. Guicciardin viii. 441 Suffring suche affinitie and coniunction together, that the one can not consist without the other.

1583 P. Barrough Methode of Phisicke Ep. Ded. sig. *ij The chiefest thing..that emboldneth men to dedicate, their labours vnto any personage, is the affinitie betweene the matter of the worke..and the minde of him to whom it is presented.

1659 J. Pearson Expos. Apostles Creed x. 726 This remission or release of debts hath a great affinity with remission of sins.

1690 J. Child Disc. Trade Pref. sig. B2^v The inseparable affinity that is..at all times between Land and Trade, which are Twins, and have always, and ever will wax and wane together.

1742 W. Clarke & W. Bowyer tr. J. Trapp Lect. Poetry ii. 17 So near is their Affinity, that by a very natural and common Metaphor, Poetry is said to paint Things, Painting to describe them.

1795 W. Mason Ess. Eng. Church Music i. 76 The sound of every individual instrument bears a perfect affinity with the rest.

1833 T. Chalmers On Power Wisdom & Goodness of God I. Introd. 10 Affinities between man and his fellows, that harmonize the individual with the general interests.

1900 Pacific Med. Jrnl. Mar. 217 As a medical practitioner Dr. Butler has undoubtedly seen much of love and its affinities.

1926 Times Lit. Suppl. 21 Oct. 710/4 Mr. Shaw's affinities..are with the biological school, whose most startling forecast, so far, is Mr. Haldane's ectogenetic baby.

2008 M. Stoetzler State, Nation, & Jews 129 There is a close affinity between Judaism and the concept of the modern state.

†a. Alliance or association between people; society, companionship; an instance of this. Also in extended use. Obsolete.

ΘΚΠ

society > society and the community > social relations > association, fellowship, or companionship > [noun]

ymonec888

i-mennessec1050

meanc1175

ferredc1200

fellowshipa1225

fellowredc1230

sameningc1230

companyc1275

monec1300

conversationc1340

meanness1340

affinity?c1400

companyingc1443

compernagea1500

frequentation?1520

society1529

convoying1543

companionship1548

companyship1548

combining1552

haunt1552

community1570

unition1584

consociation1593

companionry1595

sodality1602

conversinga1610

converse1610

consorting1611

consociety1624

consociating1625

togetherness1656

association1659

consortiona1682

sociality1758

mixture1764

junction1783

consortation1796

conversancy1798

mingling1819

companionage1838

boon companionship1844

mateship1849

?c1400 (c1380) G. Chaucer tr. Boethius De Consol. Philos. (BL Add. 10340) (1868) i. pr. iv. l. 468 They trowen that I have had affinyte [L. affines fuisse] to malefice or enchauntement.

?a1425 Mandeville's Trav. (Egerton) (1889) 97 Accorde or affinitee [Fr. lacord et lalliance]..es noght bot if it be made on þat wyse.

a1513 R. Fabyan New Cronycles Eng. & Fraunce (1516) I. ciii. f. xlii Gonobalde..promysed ayde to his power. Lotharius of this affynyte beyng warned pursued the sayde Conobalde.

1559 T. Paynell tr. Erasmus Complaint of Peace sig. E.ii^v They muste be coupled and confederated not with affynytes, nor with factious socyetes, but with pure and syncere amytie.

1579 T. North tr. Plutarch Liues 5 That so many good men would haue had affinitie with so naughty and wicked a man.

1665 I. Walton Life of Hooker Introd. About forty years past..I began a happy affinity with William Cranmer.

1685 W. Alexander Medulla Historiæ Scoticæ 4 The Brittons..suspecting that this affinity between the Scots and the Picts, might tend to their prejudice, sent Ambassadors to the Picts, perswading them to break with the Scots.

b. With possessive adjective: a person's associates or confederates; a following, a retinue. Also: a member of such a group. Now historical.

ΘΚΠ

society > authority > subjection > service > servant > retainer or follower > [noun] > collective or retinue

hirdc888

douthOE

gingc1175

folkc1275

hirdfolcc1275

tail1297

meiniec1300

routc1325

suitc1325

peoplec1330

leading1382

retinuea1387

repairc1390

retenancea1393

farneta1400

to-draughta1400

sembly14..

sequelc1420

manya1425

followingc1429

affinity?1435

family1438

train1489

estatec1500

port1545

retain1548

equipage1579

suite1579

attendancy1586

attendance1607

tendancea1616

sequacesa1660

cortège1679

?1435 in C. L. Kingsford Chrons. London (1905) 69 (MED) He and his affynytes that weren off his secte coniecten and conspirden..the deeth off the kyng.

c1450 (?a1400) Wars Alexander (Ashm.) l. 1235 (MED) Alle þe folke of his affinite at fresch ware vnwondid..to þe fliȝt foundid.

a1500 (c1465) in J. Gairdner Three 15th-cent. Chrons. (1880) 28 (MED) The Duke of Surrey, the Duke of Excester..and oþer moo of ther affynite were accorded to sle the kynge at Cristmas.

1599 J. Hayward 1st Pt. Henrie IIII 89 He with others of his affinitie went about to impeache them of treason.

1944 Trans. Royal Hist. Soc. 26 70 A successful man, therefore, gathered about him what was sometimes called his ‘affinity’.

1984 Law & Hist. Rev. 2 32 A session of the peace presided over by Arundel and several of his affinity on the county bench.

2002 S. Adams Leicester & Court iii. xxvi. 392 Leicester himself saw no conflict in theory between being a member of his affinity and being of local standing.

a. Similarity of characteristics or nature; resemblance; common ground. As a count noun: a point or instance of similarity or common ground.

ΘΚΠ

the world > relative properties > relationship > [noun] > affinity or closeness

cousinagea1398

alliancea1475

affinityc1485

propinquitya1500

societya1513

kindred1528

cognationa1555

affinitive1579

sympathya1586

vicinity1594

affiance1597

contingence1612

contingency1612

congeniality1620

umbilicality1646

consanguinity1651

congeneracy1664

gossipred1674

congenerousness1677

closeness1692

intimacy1720

proximity1762

liaison1809

cousinship1848

affiliation1870

kinship1876

c1485 ( G. Hay Bk. Knychthede (1993) vi. 33 And yat office of preste and office of knycht has sa grete affinitee and alliaunce togeder.

1541 T. Elyot Castel of Helthe (new ed.) 35 By reason of the affinitie whiche it hath with mylke, whay is convertible in to bloude and fleshe.

1582 R. Mulcaster 1st Pt. Elementarie Peroration 262 What affinitie is there in respect of their profession, betwene a simple plowman, a warie merchant, and a subtill lawyer?

1641 R. Carpenter Experience, Hist., & Divinitie iii. v. 46 What is the reason, that Grace hath such marvellous affinity with Glory?

1652 J. French York-shire Spaw viii. 71 The Salt thereof [i.e. of vitriol] hath one operation, the Colcothar another,..and that subtile acide penetrating spirit..another, and with this hath the spirit of the Spaw water great affinity.

1733 B. Franklin in Pennsylvania Gaz. 30 Aug. 1/1 The Whites..respect them [sc. mulattoes] no Whit the more for the nearer Affinity in Colour.

1769 A. Smith Let. 23 May (1977) cxx. 155 There is a good deal of affinity between her case and that of the countess of Sutherland.

1818 Amer. Monthly Mag. & Crit. Rev. June 121/1 It would be needless to adduce more examples to exhibit the affinity of the common water-spout, as observed at sea, and the whirlwind.

a1854 H. Reed Lect. Eng. Lit. (1878) ii. 74 Philosophy and poetry are for ever disclosing affinities with each other.

1931 H. Read Meaning of Art ii. 114 These artists have a greater affinity with the anonymous artists of the Gothic period than with any artists of the intervening period.

1979 D. Murphy Wheels within Wheels iii. 46 Father Power was pompous, smug and plump; though a good deal more intelligent than Jane Austen's Mr Collins there were prominent affinities, including a weakness for titled nobility.

2004 New Yorker 31 May 14/1 A frisky, enigmatic bricoleuse with affinities to Jessica Stockholder and Franz West, Harrison makes pieces that..employ lump sculptural forms.

b. Linguistics. Similarity (esp. structural) between languages that arises from and indicates their origin from a common ancestor. As a count noun: a point of similarity of this type.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > language > a language > [noun] > family of languages > quality of being related

affinity1599

cognation1862

1599 F. Thynne Animaduersions (1875) 66 The latyne, Italiane, frenche, and spanyshe haue no doble W, as the Dutche, the Englishe, and suche as haue affynytye with the Dutche.

1614 T. Jackson Third Bk. Comm. Apostles Creede 61 Bellarmine..hath no acquaintance with the Syriacke, but by the affinity of it with the Hebrew.

1659 J. Pearson Expos. Apostles Creed iii. 349 We know the affinity of the Punick tongue with the Hebrew.

1703 W. Nicolson London Diaries 27 Jan. (1985) 190 A Vocabulary of the Lithuanian Tongue sent to Mr Lhwyd to try whether that have any Affinity with the Welsh.

1796 J. Morse Amer. Universal Geogr. (new ed.) I. 80 Between some of these languages, there is indeed a great affinity.

1859 J. M. Jephson & L. Reeve Narr. Walking Tour Brittany xx. 313 To trace the affinities of words in different languages.

1885 Jrnl. Anthropol. Inst. 14 388 The..Mongolo-Altaic group, are united by the affinities of their language.

1927 E. V. Gordon Introd. Old Norse p. xvi The structure of Gothic..reveals its affinity with Norse, but the differences..are too great for Gothic to be included in the Norse group of tongues.

1964 T. Pyles Origins & Devel. Eng. Lang. 66 Whether or not Indo-European has affinities with other languages spoken in prehistoric times..no one is prepared to say with certainty.

1996 J. Lanchester Debt to Pleasure (1997) 92 Glimpses of pan-Celtic affinity in the outcroppings of the original Breton language.

c. Science. Resemblance in structure, properties, or composition between different animals, plants, or mineral substances; similarity of nature or kind; (as a count noun) a point of resemblance; (occasionally) †a form which resembles or is related to another (obsolete). In later use also: (Biology) such resemblance taken to imply differentiation from a common ancestral type; genetic relationship as deduced from such resemblance.

ΘΚΠ

the world > the earth > minerals > mineral structure or appearance > [noun] > structural resemblance between minerals

affinity1671

the world > life > biology > biological processes > genetic activity > heredity or hereditary descent > [noun] > similarity between different organisms

analogy1773

resemblance1838

affinity1840

isomorphism1902

synaposematism1907

1671 J. Webster Metallographia xviii. 252 Vitriol, such of the blue transparent sort..is of great affinity with Copper; nay, indeed the very off-spring of Venus.

1718 J. Quincy Pharmacopœia Officinalis ii. 64/2 The several Parts of Simples, whether Vegetable, Animal, or Mineral, are put together according to their nearest Affinities in Production and Growth.

1774 O. Goldsmith Hist. Earth VI. v. x. 22 In this groupe we find an extensive tribe of native birds, with their varieties and affinities.

1794 R. J. Sulivan View of Nature I. 458 Thus we shall find that antimony has an affinity with tin.

1821 N. Amer. Rev. July 118 Nothing more clearly demonstrates the unsatisfactory nature of the sexual system than the indirect attempts frequently made by recent botanists to engraft the natural affinities of plants upon their prevailing artificial characteristics.

1840 R. Owen in Rep. Brit. Assoc. Notices & Abstracts 52 The affinity of the Plesiosaurus to the Lacertian Sauria.

1921 A. L. Smith Lichens vii. 286 The lobate aquatic lichen Hydrothyria..shows affinity with other Pannariaceae in the structure of the single large-celled cortical layer.

1959 T. T. Macan Guide Freshwater Invertebr. Animals 37 The bear animalcules or Tardigrada..are often included with the Arachnids because they have four pairs of legs, though their real affinities are probably elsewhere.

1969 M. J. Viljoen & R. P. Viljoen in Geol. Soc. S. Afr. Special Publ. II. v. 89 These rocks, which have chemical affinities with the associated ultramafics, might well constitute a new class of basaltic rock.

2006 M. Fernando in C. N. B. Bambaradeniya Fauna Sri Lanka 261 A colonial form of anemone with close affinity to corals..has been recognized in recent years.

7. Liking for or attraction to a person or thing; natural inclination towards something; sympathy and understanding for something; an instance of this.Somewhat rare before 19th cent.

ΘΚΠ

the world > movement > motion in a certain direction > movement towards a thing, person, or position > [noun] > drawing towards itself or attraction > quality of

affinity1600

alliciency1646

attractiveness1661

the mind > will > wish or inclination > [noun] > turn of mind, bent, or talent

spiritc1384

bend1591

incline1596

declinationa1605

verve1697

cast1711

affinity1832

flair1925

1600 R. Surflet tr. C. Estienne & J. Liébault Maison Rustique ii. lxv. 408 For this dung by a certaine affinitie is gratefull and well liked of bees.

1625 T. Jackson Treat. Originall of Unbeliefe ii. xii. 94 The perception or representation of greene colours is not..made vpon any one part of the eye whose constitution hath more particular affinitie with greene then with blew or red.

1832 H. Martineau For Each & All iv. 61 Natural affinities are ever acting, even now, in opposition to circumstance.

1848 Blackwood's Edinb. Mag. 64 379 The confinity with agitated France, and consequently a more active affinity with its ideas.

1882 Wesleyan-Methodist Mag. Oct. 725 Her warm, trustful heart had an affinity for all that was good and helpful and merciful.

1922 J. Joyce Ulysses 686 What special affinities appeared to him to exist between the moon and woman?

1963 I. S. Rombauer & M. R. Becker Joy of Cooking (ed. 4) 530 These versatile herbs [sc. basils] have a great affinity for tomatoes, egg and fish dishes.

1978 N.Y. Times 23 July a19 Not since the days of..Roosevelt and Churchill has there been such a natural affinity between American and British leaders.

2001 E. Colfer Artemis Fowl iv. 69 If there was one race the People felt an affinity for it was the Irish.

8. Chemical attraction; the tendency of an element to unite with another element to form compounds; the tendency of a molecule to combine or form a bond (of any kind) with another.elective affinity: see elective adj. 8a.The source mentioned in quot. 1753 (É.-F. Geoffroy in Hist. de l'Acad. Royale des Sci. 1718 (1721) 202–12) uses French rapport ‘relationship’, not affinité.

ΘΚΠ

the world > matter > chemistry > chemical bonding > [noun] > chemical attraction

attraction1664

affinity1753

elective attraction1767

vital affinity1850

1753 Chambers's Cycl. Suppl. (at cited word) M. Geoffroy has given a table of the different degrees of affinity between most of the bodies employed in chemistry.

1783 R. Kirwan in Philos. Trans. (Royal Soc.) 73 35 Chymical affinity or attraction is that power by which the invisible particles of different bodies intermix and unite with each other so intimately as to be inseparable by mere mechanical means.

1808 H. Davy in Philos. Trans. (Royal Soc.) 98 343 It may be conjectured, that the basis of barytes has a higher affinity for oxygene than sodium.

1860 M. Faraday Lect. Forces Matter iii. 79 This new attraction we call chemical affinity, or the force of chemical action between different bodies.

1899 Trans Kansas Acad. Sci. 1897–8 16 51 The reagents for rendering the earth salts..insoluble in suspension are alkalis for which the solvent acid gases have a greater chemical affinity than they have for the earth salts held in solution by them.

1917 Biol. Bull. 32 365 The nucleus in the dried vitellarium loses, for the most part, its affinity for stains.

1958 Chambers's Techn. Dict. (ed. 3) 397 Haemoglobin..combines readily with oxygen to form oxyhaemoglobin, but has a still greater affinity for carbon monoxide.

1985 E. Costa in A. H. Tuma & J. Maser Anxiety & Anxiety Disorders ii. 28 The affinity whereby various benzodiazepines bind to their synaptic recognition site relates to their pharmacological potency.

2000 M. Allaby Basics Environm. Sci. (ed. 2) xxxi. 132 A compound with a strong affinity for the mineral is mixed with water and agitated to make a froth; when the crushed rock is added, the desired mineral adheres to the bubbles.

2003 B. E. Johansen Dirty Dozen Introd. 2 Because of their resistance to degradation and affinity for fat, POPs [= persistent organic pollutants] accumulate in the body fat of living organisms.

9. The state of being psychically or spiritually connected to another person, regarded as a basis for a romantic or sexual relationship; a connection of this type, serving to draw people together; a person with whom one shares such a connection.In later use frequently in the context of the beliefs of spiritualist or religious sects.

ΘΚΠ

the world > the supernatural > the paranormal > [noun] > psychic action or affinity

affinity1847

metapsychosis1885

tele1934

the world > the supernatural > the paranormal > [noun] > psychic action or affinity > one who possesses

affinity1847

society > faith > aspects of faith > spirituality > [noun] > spiritual attraction between persons

affinity1847

1847 A. J. Davis Princ. of Nature ii. 648 Thus association is determined and made perfect by the law of congeniality and affinity, or affection.

1854 J. A. Froude tr. J. W. von Goethe Elective Affinities i. iv. in Novels & Tales 34 These natural or elective affinities [Ger. Wahlverwandtschaften] have served to unite us more intimately.

1868 C. C. Carpenter in W. H. Dixon Spiritual Wives II. xxviii. 255 Another class, of whom Warren Chace is the most noted example, travelled from place to place, finding a great many affinities everywhere.

1944 S. Bellow Dangling Man 74 Why should I, furthermore, have assumed that our physical resemblance was the basis for an affinity of another kind?

1955 F. Thistlethwaite Great Exper. v. 121 The Perfectionists..in their community at Oneida..indulged an elaborately eugenical promiscuity under the guise of ‘spiritual affinity’.

2008 Oxf. Encycl. Women in World Hist. II. 338/1 The sexual relations sanctioned by spiritualism and legitimized by the affinity between soul mates.

10. Mathematics. The property of being affine (affine adj. 2). Also: an affine transformation.

ΚΠ

1904 Ann. Math. 5 101 To any homography H which is not an affinity, there correspond two combinations (Γ, O), composed of a circular transformation and a point, each of which gives rise to H.

1919 Amer. Math. Monthly 26 200 Systems of affinity in the plane as well as in space express properties invariant under a given group of transformations.

1947 E. Schrödinger in Proc. Royal Irish Acad. 1945–8 (1948) A. 51 147 (title) The relation between metric and affinity.

1958 Proc. Amer. Math. Soc. 9 471 (title) On the group of affinities of locally affine spaces.

2011 D. A. Timashev Homogeneous Spaces & Equivariant Embeddings i. 12 The lack of a group-theoretical criterion of affinity is partially compensated by a cohomological criterion.

†II. Senses relating to closeness of position.

11. The state or fact of being near to something; closeness, proximity. Cf. confinity n. Obsolete.

ΘΚΠ

the world > space > distance > nearness > [noun]

sideOE

nighnessOE

propinquity?a1425

neighboured1440

neighbourshipc1485

nearnessc1545

vicinity1560

neighbourhood1567

proximity1579

affinity1612

appropinquity1646

voisinage1665

vicinage1686

proximation1802

proximateness1881

1612 J. Cotta Short Discouerie Dangers Ignorant Practisers Physicke iii. i. 123 The patterne of perfection doth shew the more and lesse perfect..from which the farthest distance is the greatest defect, and the nearest affinitie the best excellence.

1678 R. Russel tr. Jabir ibn Haiyan Wks. Geber iv. ii. 242 The third Property is Affinity (or Vicinity) between the Elixir and the Body to be transmuted.

1772 E. Hasted in Philos. Trans. 1771 (Royal Soc.) 61 161 Some kinds of wood..decay by the near affinity of others.

Compounds

affinity card n. originally U.S. (also more fully affinity credit card) (a) a credit card offering a range of discounts or other benefits related to a particular interest or activity; (b) a cheque card or credit card for which the bank donates a portion of the money spent using the card to a designated charity or other organization.

ΘΚΠ

society > trade and finance > management of money > solvency > [noun] > credit documents > credit card

credit card1888

bank card1947

card1950

American Express1958

Amex1958

charge card1962

banker's card1966

Barclaycard1966

cheque card1966

Master Charge1966

gold card1970

asset card1975

debit card1975

visa1976

affinity card1979

master card1979

smart card1980

phonecard1981

key card1985

Connect1987

Switch card1988

1979 Amer. Banker 13 June 7/4 Mr. Shelton argues, on the other hand, that the affinity card concept is being made available to hundreds of public organizations.

1988 Which? Dec. 560/2 While these ‘affinity’ credit cards may be a good way of giving to charity, there are cheaper credit cards around.

1991 National Trust Mag. Spring 9/1 Only six months after the launch of the affinity card in April last year, the Trust and Midland Bank announced that over 36,000 National Trust Visa cards were in circulation.

2007 Big Issue 8 Jan. 14/1 (advt.) The Wedge Card is an affinity card that allows you to get discounts and special offers at various local shops.

affinity chromatography n. Biochemistry a technique of chromatography which utilizes the tendency of some molecules in solution to bind specifically to immobilized ligands.

ΘΚΠ

the world > matter > chemistry > chemical assay or analytical chemistry > [noun] > acetimetry > chromatography > types

partition chromatography1943

paper chromatography1947

ionography1950

gas chromatography1952

thin-layer chromatography1957

TLC1961

affinity chromatography1968

1968 P. Cuatrecasas et al. in Proc. National Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 61 636 In affinity chromatography, the enzyme to be purified is passed through a column containing a cross-linked polymer or gel to which a specific competitive inhibitor of the enzyme has been covalently attached.

1975 Nature 3 Apr. 441/2 Affinity chromatography..has been used extensively in the purification of soluble proteins.

1990 EMBO Jrnl. 9 3938/1 We were unable to separate individual BPc species further by heating, non-denaturing gel filtration, ion exchange chromatography or lectin affinity chromatography.

2006 H. S. Kim & D. S. Hage in D. S. Hage Handbk. Affinity Chromatogr. (ed. 2) iii. 37 A key factor in the success of any type of affinity chromatography is the way in which the ligand is attached to its support.

affinity constant n. Chemistry (chiefly Biochemistry) = dissociation constant at dissociation n. 2; (also esp. in later use) the reciprocal of the dissociation constant.

ΚΠ

1873 Amer. Chemist 4 187/2 On the common constant of affinity.]

1879 London, Edinb., & Dublin Philos. Mag. 5th Ser. 8 198 The affinity between an acid and a base is a product of the specific affinity-constants of the acid and base.

1922 J. J. Sudborough Bernthsen's Text-bk. Org. Chem. (new ed.) vi. 166 One of the most characteristic physical constants of the organic acids is what is termed the dissociation or affinity constant K.

1952 Science 26 Sept. 329/2 K_M may be set equal to the dissociation constant (k₂/k₁) of the enzyme-substrate complex, and ¹/ _{K_M} then becomes the ‘affinity’ constant.

2011 J. Yang in D. L. Young & S. Michelson Syst. Biol. Drug Discov. & Devel. iv. 69 The extent of protein binding is a function of drug and protein concentrations, the affinity constant for the drug-protein binding, and the number of protein-binding sites.

affinity group n. [compare Spanish grupo de afinidad (1928 or earlier in politics, denoting an anarchist group)] originally U.S. a group of people linked by a common purpose or interest.

ΘΚΠ

society > society and the community > social relations > an association, society, or organization > types of association, society, or organization > [noun] > other types of association, society, or organization

invisible college1647

rota1660

working party1744

free association1761

working committee1821

Ethical Society1822

bar association1824

league1846

congress1870

tiger1874

cult1875

Daughters of the American Revolution1890

community group1892

housing association1898

working party1902

development agency1910

affinity group1915

propaganda machine1916

funding body1922

collective1925

Ku-Klux1930

network1946

NGO1946

production brigade1950

umbrella organization1950

plantation1956

think-tank1958

think group1961

team1990

society > travel > air or space travel > people who fly in aircraft or spacecraft > [noun] > aircraft passengers > group having charter privileges

affinity group1976

1915 A. J. Brown Unity & Missions vi. 81 Men of like views have a kind of loose party organization; and so may church members, as witness High and Low Churchmen, Premillenarians and other affinity groups.

1960 Ann. Assoc. Amer. Geographers 50 305/2 Affinity groups can readily be presented on map-like diagrams.

1976 Time 19 Jan. 62 No longer does the traveler have to belong to a so-called affinity group, such as a club or union, to qualify for the reduced rates.

1984 T. Benn in Guardian (Nexis) 23 July Meetings..in and around the convention at which various affinity groups could meet for informal talks.

2010 N.Y. Times Mag. 3 Jan. 22/1 Self-identified liberals form an affinity group that easily migrated to the Web.

affinity label n. Biochemistry a molecule used to label an enzyme, antibody, or other macromolecule at or near an active site; see affinity labelling n.

ΚΠ

1966 Immunochemistry 3 21 Studies..were begun to determine how the affinity label was distributed within the L-chain population of rabbit Ab to the 2,4 dinitrophenyl (DNP) hapten.

1996 H. Dugas Bioorganic Chem. (ed. 3) vii. 542 Generally the affinity label has a reactive electrophilic substituent that can generate a stable covalent bond with an active site nucleophilic group.

2009 Proc. National Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 106 17968 Other light-controlled silencing methods are being developed, but require covalent attachment of a photo-switchable affinity label.

affinity labelling n. Biochemistry a technique for labelling enzymes, antibodies, or other macromolecular structures at or near an active site by means of a molecule which resembles the substrate, and may have a radioactive or fluorescent component to aid in its identification (cf. photoaffinity n.).

ΘΚΠ

the world > matter > chemistry > atomic chemistry > [noun] > molecules > technique for labelling

affinity labelling1962

1962 L. Wofsy et al. in Biochemistry 1 1031 A general method, termed affinity labeling, is proposed to achieve the labeling of the active sites of antibody and enzyme molecules.

1981 L. Stryer Biochem. (ed. 2) viii. 162 The importance of a second residue in catalysis was shown by affinity-labeling studies.

1988 P. W. Kuchel et al. Schaum's Outl. Theory & Probl. Biochem. ix. 281 The technique of affinity labeling is widely used to establish the nature of the amino acid residues in the active site of an enzyme.

2007 Proc. National Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 104 19616/2 Affinity-labeling experiments..indicated that the chitin receptor systems in Arabidopsis and rice might be significantly different.

This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2012; most recently modified version published online June 2022).

单词	affinity
释义	affinityn. Brit. /əˈfɪnᵻti/, U.S. /əˈfɪnᵻdi/ Forms: Middle English afenitye, Middle English affenyte, Middle English affynytee, Middle English afinite, Middle English afinytie, Middle English afynyte, Middle English–1500s affinite, Middle English–1500s affinitee, Middle English–1500s affinyte, Middle English–1500s affynite, Middle English–1500s affynitie, Middle English–1500s affynyte, Middle English–1500s offynyte, 1500s affinitye, 1500s affinyty, 1500s affinytye, 1500s affynytie, 1500s affynyty, 1500s affynytye, 1500s–1600s affinitie, 1500s– affinity; Scottish pre-1700 affinite, pre-1700 affinitee, pre-1700 affinitie, pre-1700 affynete, pre-1700 affynnete, pre-1700 affynyte, pre-1700 1700s– affinity. Origin: Of multiple origins. Partly a borrowing from French. Partly a borrowing from Latin. Etymons: French affinité; Latin affīnitāt-, affīnitās. Etymology: < (i) Anglo-Norman afineté, Anglo-Norman and Middle French affinité, Middle French afinité (French affinité ) neighbouring region (1160), relationship by marriage (c1260), relationship between people based on common ground in their characters, tastes, etc. (1283), similarity, resemblance (1286), family, kin (beginning of the 14th cent. or earlier), any relationship other than by marriage (1309 or earlier), friendly relationship between people (c1355), spiritual connection between godparents and godchild (early 15th cent.), structural resemblance between different animals, plants, or minerals (1538); and its etymon (ii) classical Latin affīnitāt-, affīnitās relationship by marriage, family or group related to a person by marriage, connection, in post-classical Latin also neighbourhood, adjacency (from 10th cent. in British sources) < affīnis affine adj. + -tās (see -ty suffix¹; compare -ity suffix). Compare Old Occitan afinitat (c1420), Catalan afinitat (15th cent.), Spanish afinidad (1437), Portuguese afinidade (15th cent. as †affinidade), Italian affinità (c1350).With the specific use in chemistry in sense 8 compare French affinité (1762 in this sense), and also post-classical Latin use of classical Latin affīnitās (c1250 in a similar use (in an alchemy context) in Albertus Magnus). Compare also elective affinity and elective attraction (for both, see elective adj.). Sense 9 probably shows a semantic development of sense 7. It may have been popularized by the English translation of Goethe's novel Die Wahlverwandtschaften (1809; compare quot. 1854 at sense 9); Goethe's use shows a learned pun on the scientific use (of the equivalent German term Wahlverwandtschaft ) in sense 8. I. Senses relating to connection, and to the forming of connections. 1. a. Relationship by marriage (as distinguished from relationship by blood); kinship between people or families that results from marriage; (also in early use) †ties between families or their members that result from a sexual encounter out of wedlock (obsolete). Also: an instance of this. Opposed to consanguinity n. 1a.Often in the context of the prohibition or annulment of marriages to a relative by affinity: see table of (kindred and) affinity at table n. Phrases 6. ΘΚΠ society > society and the community > kinship or relationship > [noun] > relationship by marriage affinitya1325 match1574 in-lawry1894 in-lawship1954 a1325 Statutes of Realm in MS Rawl. B.520 f. 80^v Ȝif þe schirreue of þe stude were, of his lignee ore þoru ani affinite, ateinaunt to þilke askare or partable in his askinge. c1350 (a1333) William of Shoreham Poems (1902) 68 Ȝef þou..bi-treuþy hy nauȝt—And hast flesches mone, By lawe Alle here sybbe affinite To þe for þan schel drawe. a1400 (c1303) R. Mannyng Handlyng Synne (Harl.) l. 7378 Or ȝyf he with a woman synne Þat sum of hys kyn..haþ ley here by..He calleþ hyt an affynyte. 1484 W. Caxton tr. G. de la Tour-Landry Bk. Knight of Tower (1971) lxi. 87 Be he of his parente, his affynte or other. 1509 J. Fisher Mornynge Remembraunce Countesse of Rychemonde (de Worde) sig. Aiv What by lygnage what by affinite she had .xxx. kinges & quenes within y^e .iiii. degre of maryage vnto her. a1586 R. Maitland Advyce to Kyndnes in W. A. Craigie Maitland Folio MS (1919) I. c. 315 Neirnes of blude nor ȝit affinite. 1647 N. Bacon Hist. Disc. Govt. lv. 157 Many..that by affinity and consanguinity were become Englishmen. 1660 Bp. J. Taylor Ductor Dubitantium I. ii. ii. 303 Affinity makes conjunctions and relations equal to those of Consanguinity. 1726 J. Ayliffe Parergon Juris Canonici Anglicani 326 Affinity is a Civil Bond of Persons, that are ally'd unto each other by Marriage or Espousals. 1765 W. Blackstone Comm. Laws Eng. I. xv. 434 Of this nature are pre-contract; consanguinity, or relation by blood; and affinity, or relation by marriage. 1849 T. B. Macaulay Hist. Eng. I. 172 He was closely related by affinity to the royal house. His daughter had become, by a secret marriage, Duchess of York. 1899 G. Smith United Kingdom: Polit. Hist. I. xvi. 318 The dissolution of marriages with liberty of marrying again on pretended grounds of affinity or precontract had been common. 1906 N. W. Thomas Kinship Organizations & Group Marriage Austral. i. 7 Considerations of affinity, the relations set up by marriage, do not affect the status of the parties, so far as the legality of marriage is concerned. 1956 W. S. Churchill Hist. Eng.-speaking Peoples II. iv. iv. 38 He summoned Henry to appear before him, charged with having married his deceased brother's wife within the degrees of affinity prohibited by the laws of the Church. 1985 Daily Tel. 10 Dec. 8/6 The prospect that inroads may be made into the laws which stand in the way of marriages between those related by affinity was opened up in the Lords yesterday. 2007 Jrnl. Anthropol. Res. 63 56 Women formed a core to which men were attached, either by ascent and descent or by affinity. †b. A family or group related to a person by marriage; (individually) a relative by marriage. Obsolete. ΘΚΠ society > society and the community > kinship or relationship > relations or kindred > [noun] > relations of wife or husband affinityc1405 people-in-law1894 c1405 (c1390) G. Chaucer Parson's Tale (Ellesmere) (1877) §907 The fourthe spece [of adultery] is the assemblee of hem that been of hire kynrede or of hem that been of oon affynytee. c1475 (?c1451) Bk. Noblesse (Royal) (1860) 6 (MED) Affinitees, frendis, subgectis, allies, and alle wellewilleris. 1533 T. More Debellacyon Salem & Bizance i. v. f. xxxiii^v I haue none affinitye..eyther by gossepred or by maryage. 1690 tr. G. Buchanan Hist. Scotl. x. 354 What if that Affinity were as honourable to the Father, as the Son in Law? 2. †a. A family or group related to a person by blood; a kindred; (individually) a blood relative. Also in extended use. Obsolete (rare after 17th cent.). ΘΚΠ society > society and the community > kinship or relationship > relations or kindred > [noun] kinc825 sibOE kindredOE sibness?a1300 kindc1325 affinity1357 cousinagea1382 cognationc1384 kinhoodc1440 kinsfolkc1450 evenkina1500 relation1502 kindsfolk1555 folks1715 cousinhood1748 loved onea1756 parentage1768 concerns1818 belonging1842 cousinry1844 cousinship1865 kinspeople1866 kinfolk1873 J. Gaytryge Lay Folks' Catech. (York Min.) (1901) l. 556 His sib frend, Or any othir that is of his affinite, Gastely or bodili. c1425 J. Lydgate Troyyes Bk. (Augustus A.iv) i. l. 128 (MED) He made a resygnacion To his brother, next heyr by degre, And next allye of his affinite. 1450 in C. L. Kingsford Eng. Hist. Lit. 15th Cent. (1913) 360 (MED) Þat he woll voyde all the false progeny and afynyte of the Duke of Southefolke. a1475 J. Shirley Death James (BL Add. 5467) in Miscellanea Scotica (1818) II. 7 With many other of thare afinite. a1513 R. Fabyan New Cronycles Eng. & Fraunce (1516) I. lxx. f. xxv^v He therfore with helpe of his affynyte and frendes withstode the Romaynes. 1548 Hall's Vnion: Henry VIII f. xxxvj Then sodainly was ther in y^e counsaill, a vauntparler, a botcher which heryng this, called a great nomber of his affinitie & went out of the counsayll. 1602 W. Warner Epitome Hist. Eng. in Albions Eng. (rev. ed.) 388 Much was this distraction of Regalitie from Richard the second enuied by those of his Lyne and Affinitie. 1654 tr. M. Martini Bellum Tartaricum 141 All the Generals, Commanders and Souldiers, were either of his affinity, or wholy at his Command and Obedience. 1911 R. W. Chambers Common Law 310 And 'round and 'round the little mutts all run,..Wagging and nosing—see! beneath yon tree One little mutt meets his affinity! b. Relationship by blood, consanguinity; common ancestry of individuals, races, etc.; an instance of this. ΘΚΠ society > society and the community > kinship or relationship > [noun] sibOE kindredOE sibredlOE sibnessa1250 sib-lawc1275 kindheadc1325 cousinagec1350 kinheada1375 affinitya1382 kindnessc1390 parentelec1390 parentelac1415 parentage1548 relation1561 cousinship1570 connatenessa1652 relationship1724 kindredship1733 connection1773 familyhood1808 kindredness1826 kinsmanship1842 a1382 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Bodl. 959) (1963) Ruth iii. 13 If he wile takyn þee bi riȝt of affynytee [L. propinquitatis jure; a1425 L.V. bi riȝt of nyȝ kyn]: þe thyng is weel don. 1581 J. Bell tr. W. Haddon & J. Foxe Against Jerome Osorius iii. f. 395^v Neither Christes philosophye doth acknowledge or regard carnall Fathers, Sonnes, affinities, and kinreddes. 1677 T. Gale Court of Gentiles: Pt. IV i. i. ix. 47 The great Identitie, or at least, Affinitie that was betwixt the old Britains, and Gauls. 1712 S. Centlivre Perplex'd Lovers iv. 36 Cousins may couple for all their Affinity. 1766 O. Goldsmith Vicar of Wakefield I. i. 3 Our cousins too, even to the fortieth remove, all remembered their affinity, without any help from the Heralds' office. 1794 G. Adams Lect. Nat. & Exper. Philos. III. xxxii. 364 The labour of individuals..weaves into one web the affinity and brotherhood of mankind. 1826 Greek Lexicon Schrevelius 321/1 To marry a woman, especially a brother's widow, by right of affinity. 1872 J. Yeats Growth Commerce 37 The affinities of the people which connected them..with the Semitic races of Arabia. 1902 Pop. Sci. Monthly Mar. 455 The racial affinities of this primitive people are somewhat doubtful, though they are in all probability derived from Negro stock. 1960 C. Day Lewis Buried Day i. 17 Ducal affinities..have never given me quite the satisfaction I get from imagining that..I may have been distantly related to William Butler Yeats. 1982 R. Littlewood & M. Lipsedge Aliens & Alienists ii. 51 If skin colour is emphasized, the tribal Japanese Ainu are placed in the same group as the European, while blood groups suggest an affinity between Indians and Hungarian gipsies. 2004 H. E. Winter Hist. Celts xvii. 157 Recent blood group investigation suggest [sic] a closer affinity with the Celts in Ireland and Scotland than with the Scandinavians. 3. Chiefly Roman Catholic Church. The state of being spiritually linked as a result of sponsoring a child at baptism or confirmation; spiritual connection between godparents and godchild (or his or her parents), or between the godparents themselves; an instance of this. Now usually in spiritual affinity. Also in early use: †a person or group of people having this type of connection (obsolete). Cf. gossipred n. 1a.The concept of spiritual affinity is no longer an element of Roman Catholicism, but remains a feature of certain other forms of Christianity, such as the Orthodox Church. ΘΚΠ society > faith > worship > sacrament > baptism > [noun] > spiritual relation of participants gossipredc1315 affinity1357 gossiphood1506 cognationa1575 society > society and the community > kinship or relationship > kinsman or relation > parent > parenthood > [noun] > relation of godparents or child gossipredc1315 affinity1357 gossipry?1548 gossipship1572 cognationa1575 J. Gaytryge Lay Folks' Catech. (York Min.) (1901) l. 556 His sib frend, Or any othir that is of his affinite, Gastely or bodili. 1533 T. More Debellacyon Salem & Bizance i. v. f. xxxiii^v I haue none affinitye..eyther by gossepred or by maryage. 1592 J. Throckmorton Petition most Excellent Maiestie 33 There is such affinitie betweene the Godfather and the childe..that it hindereth mariage. 1612 J. Davies Discouerie Causes Ireland 180 The like may be said of Gossipred or Compaternitie, which though by the Canon Law, it be a spirituall affinity. 1683 J. Bulteel tr. F. E. de Mézeray Gen. Chronol. Hist. France 116 Christians..established the degrees of Spiritual Affinity between the Godfather and Godmother. 1728 E. Chambers Cycl. (at cited word) The Romanists talk of a spiritual Affinity, contracted by the Sacrament of Baptism and Confirmation. 1837 Brit. Mag. & Monthly Rev. Aug. 139 That spiritual affinity which the church of Rome supposes to be contracted between sponsors. 1866 E. A. Freeman in Fortn. Rev. May 654 Æthelwald purposely asks the King to become godfather to the child, in order that he might thereby contract a spiritual affinity with the mother. 1907 P. Deming Story of Pathfinder 176 He said that he did not like the midnight baptism, the spiritual affinity, the doctrines of Perfectionism, or the excitement about the end of the world. 1908 New Schaff-Herzog Encycl. Relig. Knowl. I. 446/2 The institution of sponsors was retained, with infant baptism, by the Evangelical Churches at the Reformation... The notion of spiritual affinity was dropped. 1978 P. K. Jewett Infant Baptism & Covenant of Grace (1980) 179 They [sc. the parents] were rendered unworthy of so godly an affinity with the child born of their carnal union. 2010 G. Chapple tr. M. Mitterauer Why Europe? iii. 88 Islam..does not have baptism, hence no baptismal sponsorship or any sacramental forms of spiritual affinity modeled on it. 4. The state of being closely connected or mutually dependent; an instance or example of this; a link, a connection. Also: something which is connected to or accompanies something else. ΘΚΠ the world > relative properties > relationship > correlation > [noun] > mutuality or reciprocity affinitya1398 reciprocation1546 mutualitya1586 mutualness1620 intermutualness1628 reciprocality1653 reciprocalness1657 reciprocity1753 reciprocy1803 commutuality1812 interdependence1822 interdependency1838 symbiosis1921 a1398 J. Trevisa tr. Bartholomaeus Anglicus De Proprietatibus Rerum (BL Add. 27944) (1975) II. xviii. xxxii. 1180 Þer is so gret affinite bitwen houes, clees, and hornes. a1400 tr. Lanfranc Sci. Cirurgie (Ashm.) (1894) 152 (MED) If þat ony of þe veynes organik..be kutt, it is drede of sodeyn deeþ..for affinite of þe herte. c1454 R. Pecock Folewer to Donet 95 (MED) Þer is an affynyte and neiȝborehode and a knytting togidere of oure soul to þe bodi. 1540 R. Morison tr. J. L. Vives Introd. Wysedome (new ed.) C iiij Vyces and their affynities, as foolyshnes, ignorancy, amased dulnesse. 1579 G. Fenton tr. F. Guicciardini Hist. Guicciardin viii. 441 Suffring suche affinitie and coniunction together, that the one can not consist without the other. 1583 P. Barrough Methode of Phisicke Ep. Ded. sig. ij The chiefest thing..that emboldneth men to dedicate, their labours vnto any personage, is the affinitie betweene the matter of the worke..and the minde of him to whom it is presented. 1659 J. Pearson Expos. Apostles Creed* x. 726 This remission or release of debts hath a great affinity with remission of sins. 1690 J. Child Disc. Trade Pref. sig. B2^v The inseparable affinity that is..at all times between Land and Trade, which are Twins, and have always, and ever will wax and wane together. 1742 W. Clarke & W. Bowyer tr. J. Trapp Lect. Poetry ii. 17 So near is their Affinity, that by a very natural and common Metaphor, Poetry is said to paint Things, Painting to describe them. 1795 W. Mason Ess. Eng. Church Music i. 76 The sound of every individual instrument bears a perfect affinity with the rest. 1833 T. Chalmers On Power Wisdom & Goodness of God I. Introd. 10 Affinities between man and his fellows, that harmonize the individual with the general interests. 1900 Pacific Med. Jrnl. Mar. 217 As a medical practitioner Dr. Butler has undoubtedly seen much of love and its affinities. 1926 Times Lit. Suppl. 21 Oct. 710/4 Mr. Shaw's affinities..are with the biological school, whose most startling forecast, so far, is Mr. Haldane's ectogenetic baby. 2008 M. Stoetzler State, Nation, & Jews 129 There is a close affinity between Judaism and the concept of the modern state. 5. †a. Alliance or association between people; society, companionship; an instance of this. Also in extended use. Obsolete. ΘΚΠ society > society and the community > social relations > association, fellowship, or companionship > [noun] ymonec888 i-mennessec1050 meanc1175 ferredc1200 fellowshipa1225 fellowredc1230 sameningc1230 companyc1275 monec1300 conversationc1340 meanness1340 affinity?c1400 companyingc1443 compernagea1500 frequentation?1520 society1529 convoying1543 companionship1548 companyship1548 combining1552 haunt1552 community1570 unition1584 consociation1593 companionry1595 sodality1602 conversinga1610 converse1610 consorting1611 consociety1624 consociating1625 togetherness1656 association1659 consortiona1682 sociality1758 mixture1764 junction1783 consortation1796 conversancy1798 mingling1819 companionage1838 boon companionship1844 mateship1849 ?c1400 (c1380) G. Chaucer tr. Boethius De Consol. Philos. (BL Add. 10340) (1868) i. pr. iv. l. 468 They trowen that I have had affinyte [L. affines fuisse] to malefice or enchauntement. ?a1425 Mandeville's Trav. (Egerton) (1889) 97 Accorde or affinitee [Fr. lacord et lalliance]..es noght bot if it be made on þat wyse. a1513 R. Fabyan New Cronycles Eng. & Fraunce (1516) I. ciii. f. xlii Gonobalde..promysed ayde to his power. Lotharius of this affynyte beyng warned pursued the sayde Conobalde. 1559 T. Paynell tr. Erasmus Complaint of Peace sig. E.ii^v They muste be coupled and confederated not with affynytes, nor with factious socyetes, but with pure and syncere amytie. 1579 T. North tr. Plutarch Liues 5 That so many good men would haue had affinitie with so naughty and wicked a man. 1665 I. Walton Life of Hooker Introd. About forty years past..I began a happy affinity with William Cranmer. 1685 W. Alexander Medulla Historiæ Scoticæ 4 The Brittons..suspecting that this affinity between the Scots and the Picts, might tend to their prejudice, sent Ambassadors to the Picts, perswading them to break with the Scots. b. With possessive adjective: a person's associates or confederates; a following, a retinue. Also: a member of such a group. Now historical. ΘΚΠ society > authority > subjection > service > servant > retainer or follower > [noun] > collective or retinue hirdc888 douthOE gingc1175 folkc1275 hirdfolcc1275 tail1297 meiniec1300 meiniec1300 routc1325 suitc1325 peoplec1330 leading1382 retinuea1387 repairc1390 retenancea1393 farneta1400 to-draughta1400 sembly14.. sequelc1420 manya1425 followingc1429 affinity?1435 family1438 train1489 estatec1500 port1545 retain1548 equipage1579 suite1579 attendancy1586 attendance1607 tendancea1616 sequacesa1660 cortège1679 ?1435 in C. L. Kingsford Chrons. London (1905) 69 (MED) He and his affynytes that weren off his secte coniecten and conspirden..the deeth off the kyng. c1450 (?a1400) Wars Alexander (Ashm.) l. 1235 (MED) Alle þe folke of his affinite at fresch ware vnwondid..to þe fliȝt foundid. a1500 (c1465) in J. Gairdner Three 15th-cent. Chrons. (1880) 28 (MED) The Duke of Surrey, the Duke of Excester..and oþer moo of ther affynite were accorded to sle the kynge at Cristmas. 1599 J. Hayward 1st Pt. Henrie IIII 89 He with others of his affinitie went about to impeache them of treason. 1944 Trans. Royal Hist. Soc. 26 70 A successful man, therefore, gathered about him what was sometimes called his ‘affinity’. 1984 Law & Hist. Rev. 2 32 A session of the peace presided over by Arundel and several of his affinity on the county bench. 2002 S. Adams Leicester & Court iii. xxvi. 392 Leicester himself saw no conflict in theory between being a member of his affinity and being of local standing. 6. a. Similarity of characteristics or nature; resemblance; common ground. As a count noun: a point or instance of similarity or common ground. ΘΚΠ the world > relative properties > relationship > [noun] > affinity or closeness cousinagea1398 alliancea1475 affinityc1485 propinquitya1500 societya1513 kindred1528 cognationa1555 affinitive1579 sympathya1586 vicinity1594 affiance1597 contingence1612 contingency1612 congeniality1620 umbilicality1646 consanguinity1651 congeneracy1664 gossipred1674 congenerousness1677 closeness1692 intimacy1720 proximity1762 liaison1809 cousinship1848 affiliation1870 kinship1876 c1485 ( G. Hay Bk. Knychthede (1993) vi. 33 And yat office of preste and office of knycht has sa grete affinitee and alliaunce togeder. 1541 T. Elyot Castel of Helthe (new ed.) 35 By reason of the affinitie whiche it hath with mylke, whay is convertible in to bloude and fleshe. 1582 R. Mulcaster 1st Pt. Elementarie Peroration 262 What affinitie is there in respect of their profession, betwene a simple plowman, a warie merchant, and a subtill lawyer? 1641 R. Carpenter Experience, Hist., & Divinitie iii. v. 46 What is the reason, that Grace hath such marvellous affinity with Glory? 1652 J. French York-shire Spaw viii. 71 The Salt thereof [i.e. of vitriol] hath one operation, the Colcothar another,..and that subtile acide penetrating spirit..another, and with this hath the spirit of the Spaw water great affinity. 1733 B. Franklin in Pennsylvania Gaz. 30 Aug. 1/1 The Whites..respect them [sc. mulattoes] no Whit the more for the nearer Affinity in Colour. 1769 A. Smith Let. 23 May (1977) cxx. 155 There is a good deal of affinity between her case and that of the countess of Sutherland. 1818 Amer. Monthly Mag. & Crit. Rev. June 121/1 It would be needless to adduce more examples to exhibit the affinity of the common water-spout, as observed at sea, and the whirlwind. a1854 H. Reed Lect. Eng. Lit. (1878) ii. 74 Philosophy and poetry are for ever disclosing affinities with each other. 1931 H. Read Meaning of Art ii. 114 These artists have a greater affinity with the anonymous artists of the Gothic period than with any artists of the intervening period. 1979 D. Murphy Wheels within Wheels iii. 46 Father Power was pompous, smug and plump; though a good deal more intelligent than Jane Austen's Mr Collins there were prominent affinities, including a weakness for titled nobility. 2004 New Yorker 31 May 14/1 A frisky, enigmatic bricoleuse with affinities to Jessica Stockholder and Franz West, Harrison makes pieces that..employ lump sculptural forms. b. Linguistics. Similarity (esp. structural) between languages that arises from and indicates their origin from a common ancestor. As a count noun: a point of similarity of this type. ΘΚΠ the mind > language > a language > [noun] > family of languages > quality of being related affinity1599 cognation1862 1599 F. Thynne Animaduersions (1875) 66 The latyne, Italiane, frenche, and spanyshe haue no doble W, as the Dutche, the Englishe, and suche as haue affynytye with the Dutche. 1614 T. Jackson Third Bk. Comm. Apostles Creede 61 Bellarmine..hath no acquaintance with the Syriacke, but by the affinity of it with the Hebrew. 1659 J. Pearson Expos. Apostles Creed iii. 349 We know the affinity of the Punick tongue with the Hebrew. 1703 W. Nicolson London Diaries 27 Jan. (1985) 190 A Vocabulary of the Lithuanian Tongue sent to Mr Lhwyd to try whether that have any Affinity with the Welsh. 1796 J. Morse Amer. Universal Geogr. (new ed.) I. 80 Between some of these languages, there is indeed a great affinity. 1859 J. M. Jephson & L. Reeve Narr. Walking Tour Brittany xx. 313 To trace the affinities of words in different languages. 1885 Jrnl. Anthropol. Inst. 14 388 The..Mongolo-Altaic group, are united by the affinities of their language. 1927 E. V. Gordon Introd. Old Norse p. xvi The structure of Gothic..reveals its affinity with Norse, but the differences..are too great for Gothic to be included in the Norse group of tongues. 1964 T. Pyles Origins & Devel. Eng. Lang. 66 Whether or not Indo-European has affinities with other languages spoken in prehistoric times..no one is prepared to say with certainty. 1996 J. Lanchester Debt to Pleasure (1997) 92 Glimpses of pan-Celtic affinity in the outcroppings of the original Breton language. c. Science. Resemblance in structure, properties, or composition between different animals, plants, or mineral substances; similarity of nature or kind; (as a count noun) a point of resemblance; (occasionally) †a form which resembles or is related to another (obsolete). In later use also: (Biology) such resemblance taken to imply differentiation from a common ancestral type; genetic relationship as deduced from such resemblance. ΘΚΠ the world > the earth > minerals > mineral structure or appearance > [noun] > structural resemblance between minerals affinity1671 the world > life > biology > biological processes > genetic activity > heredity or hereditary descent > [noun] > similarity between different organisms analogy1773 resemblance1838 affinity1840 isomorphism1902 synaposematism1907 1671 J. Webster Metallographia xviii. 252 Vitriol, such of the blue transparent sort..is of great affinity with Copper; nay, indeed the very off-spring of Venus. 1718 J. Quincy Pharmacopœia Officinalis ii. 64/2 The several Parts of Simples, whether Vegetable, Animal, or Mineral, are put together according to their nearest Affinities in Production and Growth. 1774 O. Goldsmith Hist. Earth VI. v. x. 22 In this groupe we find an extensive tribe of native birds, with their varieties and affinities. 1794 R. J. Sulivan View of Nature I. 458 Thus we shall find that antimony has an affinity with tin. 1821 N. Amer. Rev. July 118 Nothing more clearly demonstrates the unsatisfactory nature of the sexual system than the indirect attempts frequently made by recent botanists to engraft the natural affinities of plants upon their prevailing artificial characteristics. 1840 R. Owen in Rep. Brit. Assoc. Notices & Abstracts 52 The affinity of the Plesiosaurus to the Lacertian Sauria. 1921 A. L. Smith Lichens vii. 286 The lobate aquatic lichen Hydrothyria..shows affinity with other Pannariaceae in the structure of the single large-celled cortical layer. 1959 T. T. Macan Guide Freshwater Invertebr. Animals 37 The bear animalcules or Tardigrada..are often included with the Arachnids because they have four pairs of legs, though their real affinities are probably elsewhere. 1969 M. J. Viljoen & R. P. Viljoen in Geol. Soc. S. Afr. Special Publ. II. v. 89 These rocks, which have chemical affinities with the associated ultramafics, might well constitute a new class of basaltic rock. 2006 M. Fernando in C. N. B. Bambaradeniya Fauna Sri Lanka 261 A colonial form of anemone with close affinity to corals..has been recognized in recent years. 7. Liking for or attraction to a person or thing; natural inclination towards something; sympathy and understanding for something; an instance of this.Somewhat rare before 19th cent. ΘΚΠ the world > movement > motion in a certain direction > movement towards a thing, person, or position > [noun] > drawing towards itself or attraction > quality of affinity1600 alliciency1646 attractiveness1661 the mind > will > wish or inclination > [noun] > turn of mind, bent, or talent spiritc1384 bend1591 incline1596 declinationa1605 verve1697 cast1711 affinity1832 flair1925 1600 R. Surflet tr. C. Estienne & J. Liébault Maison Rustique ii. lxv. 408 For this dung by a certaine affinitie is gratefull and well liked of bees. 1625 T. Jackson Treat. Originall of Unbeliefe ii. xii. 94 The perception or representation of greene colours is not..made vpon any one part of the eye whose constitution hath more particular affinitie with greene then with blew or red. 1832 H. Martineau For Each & All iv. 61 Natural affinities are ever acting, even now, in opposition to circumstance. 1848 Blackwood's Edinb. Mag. 64 379 The confinity with agitated France, and consequently a more active affinity with its ideas. 1882 Wesleyan-Methodist Mag. Oct. 725 Her warm, trustful heart had an affinity for all that was good and helpful and merciful. 1922 J. Joyce Ulysses 686 What special affinities appeared to him to exist between the moon and woman? 1963 I. S. Rombauer & M. R. Becker Joy of Cooking (ed. 4) 530 These versatile herbs [sc. basils] have a great affinity for tomatoes, egg and fish dishes. 1978 N.Y. Times 23 July a19 Not since the days of..Roosevelt and Churchill has there been such a natural affinity between American and British leaders. 2001 E. Colfer Artemis Fowl iv. 69 If there was one race the People felt an affinity for it was the Irish. 8. Chemical attraction; the tendency of an element to unite with another element to form compounds; the tendency of a molecule to combine or form a bond (of any kind) with another.elective affinity: see elective adj. 8a.The source mentioned in quot. 1753 (É.-F. Geoffroy in Hist. de l'Acad. Royale des Sci. 1718 (1721) 202–12) uses French rapport ‘relationship’, not affinité. ΘΚΠ the world > matter > chemistry > chemical bonding > [noun] > chemical attraction attraction1664 affinity1753 elective attraction1767 vital affinity1850 1753 Chambers's Cycl. Suppl. (at cited word) M. Geoffroy has given a table of the different degrees of affinity between most of the bodies employed in chemistry. 1783 R. Kirwan in Philos. Trans. (Royal Soc.) 73 35 Chymical affinity or attraction is that power by which the invisible particles of different bodies intermix and unite with each other so intimately as to be inseparable by mere mechanical means. 1808 H. Davy in Philos. Trans. (Royal Soc.) 98 343 It may be conjectured, that the basis of barytes has a higher affinity for oxygene than sodium. 1860 M. Faraday Lect. Forces Matter iii. 79 This new attraction we call chemical affinity, or the force of chemical action between different bodies. 1899 Trans Kansas Acad. Sci. 1897–8 16 51 The reagents for rendering the earth salts..insoluble in suspension are alkalis for which the solvent acid gases have a greater chemical affinity than they have for the earth salts held in solution by them. 1917 Biol. Bull. 32 365 The nucleus in the dried vitellarium loses, for the most part, its affinity for stains. 1958 Chambers's Techn. Dict. (ed. 3) 397 Haemoglobin..combines readily with oxygen to form oxyhaemoglobin, but has a still greater affinity for carbon monoxide. 1985 E. Costa in A. H. Tuma & J. Maser Anxiety & Anxiety Disorders ii. 28 The affinity whereby various benzodiazepines bind to their synaptic recognition site relates to their pharmacological potency. 2000 M. Allaby Basics Environm. Sci. (ed. 2) xxxi. 132 A compound with a strong affinity for the mineral is mixed with water and agitated to make a froth; when the crushed rock is added, the desired mineral adheres to the bubbles. 2003 B. E. Johansen Dirty Dozen Introd. 2 Because of their resistance to degradation and affinity for fat, POPs [= persistent organic pollutants] accumulate in the body fat of living organisms. 9. The state of being psychically or spiritually connected to another person, regarded as a basis for a romantic or sexual relationship; a connection of this type, serving to draw people together; a person with whom one shares such a connection.In later use frequently in the context of the beliefs of spiritualist or religious sects. ΘΚΠ the world > the supernatural > the paranormal > [noun] > psychic action or affinity affinity1847 metapsychosis1885 tele1934 the world > the supernatural > the paranormal > [noun] > psychic action or affinity > one who possesses affinity1847 society > faith > aspects of faith > spirituality > [noun] > spiritual attraction between persons affinity1847 1847 A. J. Davis Princ. of Nature ii. 648 Thus association is determined and made perfect by the law of congeniality and affinity, or affection. 1854 J. A. Froude tr. J. W. von Goethe Elective Affinities i. iv. in Novels & Tales 34 These natural or elective affinities [Ger. Wahlverwandtschaften] have served to unite us more intimately. 1868 C. C. Carpenter in W. H. Dixon Spiritual Wives II. xxviii. 255 Another class, of whom Warren Chace is the most noted example, travelled from place to place, finding a great many affinities everywhere. 1944 S. Bellow Dangling Man 74 Why should I, furthermore, have assumed that our physical resemblance was the basis for an affinity of another kind? 1955 F. Thistlethwaite Great Exper. v. 121 The Perfectionists..in their community at Oneida..indulged an elaborately eugenical promiscuity under the guise of ‘spiritual affinity’. 2008 Oxf. Encycl. Women in World Hist. II. 338/1 The sexual relations sanctioned by spiritualism and legitimized by the affinity between soul mates. 10. Mathematics. The property of being affine (affine adj. 2). Also: an affine transformation. ΚΠ 1904 Ann. Math. 5 101 To any homography H which is not an affinity, there correspond two combinations (Γ, O), composed of a circular transformation and a point, each of which gives rise to H. 1919 Amer. Math. Monthly 26 200 Systems of affinity in the plane as well as in space express properties invariant under a given group of transformations. 1947 E. Schrödinger in Proc. Royal Irish Acad. 1945–8 (1948) A. 51 147 (title) The relation between metric and affinity. 1958 Proc. Amer. Math. Soc. 9 471 (title) On the group of affinities of locally affine spaces. 2011 D. A. Timashev Homogeneous Spaces & Equivariant Embeddings i. 12 The lack of a group-theoretical criterion of affinity is partially compensated by a cohomological criterion. †II. Senses relating to closeness of position. 11. The state or fact of being near to something; closeness, proximity. Cf. confinity n. Obsolete. ΘΚΠ the world > space > distance > nearness > [noun] sideOE nighnessOE propinquity?a1425 neighboured1440 neighbourshipc1485 nearnessc1545 vicinity1560 neighbourhood1567 proximity1579 affinity1612 appropinquity1646 voisinage1665 vicinage1686 proximation1802 proximateness1881 1612 J. Cotta Short Discouerie Dangers Ignorant Practisers Physicke iii. i. 123 The patterne of perfection doth shew the more and lesse perfect..from which the farthest distance is the greatest defect, and the nearest affinitie the best excellence. 1678 R. Russel tr. Jabir ibn Haiyan Wks. Geber iv. ii. 242 The third Property is Affinity (or Vicinity) between the Elixir and the Body to be transmuted. 1772 E. Hasted in Philos. Trans. 1771 (Royal Soc.) 61 161 Some kinds of wood..decay by the near affinity of others. Compounds affinity card n. originally U.S. (also more fully affinity credit card) (a) a credit card offering a range of discounts or other benefits related to a particular interest or activity; (b) a cheque card or credit card for which the bank donates a portion of the money spent using the card to a designated charity or other organization. ΘΚΠ society > trade and finance > management of money > solvency > [noun] > credit documents > credit card credit card1888 bank card1947 card1950 American Express1958 Amex1958 charge card1962 banker's card1966 Barclaycard1966 cheque card1966 Master Charge1966 gold card1970 asset card1975 debit card1975 visa1976 affinity card1979 master card1979 smart card1980 phonecard1981 key card1985 Connect1987 Switch card1988 1979 Amer. Banker 13 June 7/4 Mr. Shelton argues, on the other hand, that the affinity card concept is being made available to hundreds of public organizations. 1988 Which? Dec. 560/2 While these ‘affinity’ credit cards may be a good way of giving to charity, there are cheaper credit cards around. 1991 National Trust Mag. Spring 9/1 Only six months after the launch of the affinity card in April last year, the Trust and Midland Bank announced that over 36,000 National Trust Visa cards were in circulation. 2007 Big Issue 8 Jan. 14/1 (advt.) The Wedge Card is an affinity card that allows you to get discounts and special offers at various local shops. affinity chromatography n. Biochemistry a technique of chromatography which utilizes the tendency of some molecules in solution to bind specifically to immobilized ligands. ΘΚΠ the world > matter > chemistry > chemical assay or analytical chemistry > [noun] > acetimetry > chromatography > types partition chromatography1943 paper chromatography1947 ionography1950 gas chromatography1952 thin-layer chromatography1957 TLC1961 affinity chromatography1968 1968 P. Cuatrecasas et al. in Proc. National Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 61 636 In affinity chromatography, the enzyme to be purified is passed through a column containing a cross-linked polymer or gel to which a specific competitive inhibitor of the enzyme has been covalently attached. 1975 Nature 3 Apr. 441/2 Affinity chromatography..has been used extensively in the purification of soluble proteins. 1990 EMBO Jrnl. 9 3938/1 We were unable to separate individual BPc species further by heating, non-denaturing gel filtration, ion exchange chromatography or lectin affinity chromatography. 2006 H. S. Kim & D. S. Hage in D. S. Hage Handbk. Affinity Chromatogr. (ed. 2) iii. 37 A key factor in the success of any type of affinity chromatography is the way in which the ligand is attached to its support. affinity constant n. Chemistry (chiefly Biochemistry) = dissociation constant at dissociation n. 2; (also esp. in later use) the reciprocal of the dissociation constant. ΚΠ 1873 Amer. Chemist 4 187/2 On the common constant of affinity.] 1879 London, Edinb., & Dublin Philos. Mag. 5th Ser. 8 198 The affinity between an acid and a base is a product of the specific affinity-constants of the acid and base. 1922 J. J. Sudborough Bernthsen's Text-bk. Org. Chem. (new ed.) vi. 166 One of the most characteristic physical constants of the organic acids is what is termed the dissociation or affinity constant K. 1952 Science 26 Sept. 329/2 K_M may be set equal to the dissociation constant (k₂/k₁) of the enzyme-substrate complex, and ¹/ _{K_M} then becomes the ‘affinity’ constant. 2011 J. Yang in D. L. Young & S. Michelson Syst. Biol. Drug Discov. & Devel. iv. 69 The extent of protein binding is a function of drug and protein concentrations, the affinity constant for the drug-protein binding, and the number of protein-binding sites. affinity group n. [compare Spanish grupo de afinidad (1928 or earlier in politics, denoting an anarchist group)] originally U.S. a group of people linked by a common purpose or interest. ΘΚΠ society > society and the community > social relations > an association, society, or organization > types of association, society, or organization > [noun] > other types of association, society, or organization invisible college1647 rota1660 working party1744 free association1761 working committee1821 Ethical Society1822 bar association1824 league1846 congress1870 tiger1874 cult1875 Daughters of the American Revolution1890 community group1892 housing association1898 working party1902 development agency1910 affinity group1915 propaganda machine1916 funding body1922 collective1925 Ku-Klux1930 network1946 NGO1946 production brigade1950 umbrella organization1950 plantation1956 think-tank1958 think group1961 team1990 society > travel > air or space travel > people who fly in aircraft or spacecraft > [noun] > aircraft passengers > group having charter privileges affinity group1976 1915 A. J. Brown Unity & Missions vi. 81 Men of like views have a kind of loose party organization; and so may church members, as witness High and Low Churchmen, Premillenarians and other affinity groups. 1960 Ann. Assoc. Amer. Geographers 50 305/2 Affinity groups can readily be presented on map-like diagrams. 1976 Time 19 Jan. 62 No longer does the traveler have to belong to a so-called affinity group, such as a club or union, to qualify for the reduced rates. 1984 T. Benn in Guardian (Nexis) 23 July Meetings..in and around the convention at which various affinity groups could meet for informal talks. 2010 N.Y. Times Mag. 3 Jan. 22/1 Self-identified liberals form an affinity group that easily migrated to the Web. affinity label n. Biochemistry a molecule used to label an enzyme, antibody, or other macromolecule at or near an active site; see affinity labelling n. ΚΠ 1966 Immunochemistry 3 21 Studies..were begun to determine how the affinity label was distributed within the L-chain population of rabbit Ab to the 2,4 dinitrophenyl (DNP) hapten. 1996 H. Dugas Bioorganic Chem. (ed. 3) vii. 542 Generally the affinity label has a reactive electrophilic substituent that can generate a stable covalent bond with an active site nucleophilic group. 2009 Proc. National Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 106 17968 Other light-controlled silencing methods are being developed, but require covalent attachment of a photo-switchable affinity label. affinity labelling n. Biochemistry a technique for labelling enzymes, antibodies, or other macromolecular structures at or near an active site by means of a molecule which resembles the substrate, and may have a radioactive or fluorescent component to aid in its identification (cf. photoaffinity n.). ΘΚΠ the world > matter > chemistry > atomic chemistry > [noun] > molecules > technique for labelling affinity labelling1962 1962 L. Wofsy et al. in Biochemistry 1 1031 A general method, termed affinity labeling, is proposed to achieve the labeling of the active sites of antibody and enzyme molecules. 1981 L. Stryer Biochem. (ed. 2) viii. 162 The importance of a second residue in catalysis was shown by affinity-labeling studies. 1988 P. W. Kuchel et al. Schaum's Outl. Theory & Probl. Biochem. ix. 281 The technique of affinity labeling is widely used to establish the nature of the amino acid residues in the active site of an enzyme. 2007 Proc. National Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 104 19616/2 Affinity-labeling experiments..indicated that the chitin receptor systems in Arabidopsis and rice might be significantly different. This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2012; most recently modified version published online June 2022). < n.a1325
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