Webster's English Dictionary

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predilection

pre.di.lec.tion \.pred-*l-'ek-sh*n, .pre-d-\ n [F pre`dilection, fr. ML 
   praedilectus, pp. of praediligere t]o love more, prefer, fr. L prae- + 
   diligere to love - more at DILIGENT : a prepossession in favor of something 
   : PREFERENCE  implies a strong liking deriving from one's temperament or 
   experience; PREPOSSESSION suggests a fixed conception likely to preclude 
   objective judgment of anything seeming to be counter to it; PREJUDICE 
   implies usu. but not always an unfavorable prepossession and connotes a 
   feeling rooted in suspicion, fear, intolerance; BIAS implies an unreasoned 
   and unfair distortion of judgment in favor of or against a person or thing 
   SYN syn PREPOSSESSION, PREJUDICE, BIAS: PREDILECTION