amateur: Meaning and Definition of

am•a•teur

Pronunciation: (am'u-choor", -chur, -tur, am"u-tûr'), [key]
— n.
  1. a person who engages in a study, sport, or other activity for pleasure rather than for financial benefit or professional reasons. Cf. professional.
  2. an athlete who has never competed for payment or for a monetary prize.
  3. a person inexperienced or unskilled in a particular activity: Hunting lions is not for amateurs.
  4. a person who admires something; devotee; fan: an amateur of the cinema.
—adj.
  1. characteristic of or engaged in by an amateur; nonprofessional: an amateur painter; amateur tennis.
Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.
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