dilettante means pertaining to or like a dilettante.
dilettante is pronounced /dɪlɪˈtænti/.
Why “dilettante” is a great word
One who engages with an art or field in a casual, superficial manner, deriving pleasure rather than pursuing mastery. From the Italian *dilettante*, present participle of *dilettare* ("to delight"), from the Latin *dēlectāre* ("to delight, please"). Unlike an amateur, who may lack formal training but not depth of passion or skill, or a connoisseur, who possesses authoritative, discerning expertise, the dilettante skims the pleasing surface. It is the gentleman who collects butterfly specimens he cannot name, the listener who praises a symphony's "lovely tunes" but cannot follow its themes, the salon guest holding forth on a philosophy he read in précis—a life spent in the antechamber of knowledge, where delight is in the doorways, never the depths.
Etymology
From Italian dilettante, present participle of dilettare (“to delight”), from Latin dēlectāre (“to delight”).
adj
- Pertaining to or like a dilettante.
noun
- An amateur, someone who dabbles in a field out of casual interest rather than as a profession or serious interest.
- A person with a general but superficial interest in any art or a branch of knowledge.“A comment like "The author is a self-important dilettante." is really nothing more than a pretentious version of "u r a fag."”
Words closest in meaning
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