Affection | af· fec· on | \ ə-ˈfek-shən\ noun

Definition of affection

1: a feeling of liking and caring for someone or something: tender attachment: fondness She had a deep affection for her parents.

2: a moderate feeling or emotion

Affection or fondness is a “disposition or state of mind or body” that is often associated with a feeling or type of love. It has given rise to several branches of philosophy and psychology concerning emotion, disease, influence, and state of being. “Affection” is popularly used to denote a feeling or type of love, amounting to more than goodwill or friendship. Writers on ethics generally use the word to refer to distinct states of feeling, both lasting and spasmodic. Some contrast it with passion as being free from the distinctively sensual element.