Amateur

Amateur

An amateur is generally considered a person attached to a particular pursuit, study, or science, without formal training or pay. [ [http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/amateur Wiktionary: Amateur] ] Conversely, an expert is generally considered a person with extensive knowledge, ability, and/or training in a particular area of study, while a "professional" is someone who also makes a living from it. Translated from its French origin to the English "lover of", the term "amateur" reflects a voluntary motivation to work as a result of personal passion for a particular activity.

As with any construct, amateurism can be seen in both a negative and positive light. Since amateurs often do not have training, amateur work can sometimes be seen as sub-par. For example, amateur athletes in sports such as basketball or football are not regarded as having the same level of ability as professional athletes.

Alternatively, the lack of financial recompense can also be seen as a sign of commitment to an activity. For instance, until the 1970s most Olympic events required that the athletes be amateurs. Receiving payment to participate in an event disqualified an athlete from that event, as in the case of Jim Thorpe. In the Olympic games, this rule remains in place for boxing.

Amateurs make valuable contributions in the fields of computer programming through the open source movement. Amateur Dramatics is the performance of either plays or musical theater, often to high standards but lacking the budgets of the professional West End or Broadway performances. Astronomy and ornithology have also benefited from the activity of amateurs.

Pursuing amateur activities to the same standards as professionals is sometimes referred to as "professional amateurism".

ee also

* Volunteer
* Hobby
* Amateur astronomy
* Amateur radio
* Amateur sports
* Corinthian (disambiguation)
* Home movies
* Bush League
* Mark Korpics

Notes

External links

* [http://jordan.hoek.googlepages.com/what%27sanamateur%3F What's an Amateur?]


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Synonyms:
, (pl. dilettanti),


Look at other dictionaries:

  • amateur — amateur, trice [ amatɶr, tris ] n. • XVe; lat. amator 1 ♦ Personne qui aime, cultive, recherche (certaines choses). Un amateur de musique. Il est amateur de bonne cuisine. « des amateurs et surtout des amatrices de raï » (Le Monde, 1998). Les… …   Encyclopédie Universelle

  • amateur — amateur, dilettante, dabbler, tyro denote a person who follows a pursuit without attaining proficiency or a professional status. Amateur may denote one who has a taste or liking for something rather than an expert knowledge of it; in this sense… …   New Dictionary of Synonyms

  • amateur — am‧a‧teur [ˈæmətə, tʆʊə, tʆə, ˌæməˈtɜː ǁ ˈæmətʆʊr, tər] noun [countable] someone who does an activity for pleasure, not as a job: • He thinks the drawings could be the work of an amateur. amateur adjective : • amateur photographers * * * Ⅰ.… …   Financial and business terms

  • Amateur — Saltar a navegación, búsqueda Amateur es un término tomado del francés es generalmente empleado al referirse a un aficionado, o a un género de índole no profesional en algún area estudio o de entretenimiento. Amateur. Título de una película.… …   Wikipedia Español

  • amateur — AMATEUR. s. m. Celui qui a beaucoup d attachement, de goût pour quelque chose. Amateur de la vertu, de la gloire. Amateur de louanges. Amateur de la nouveauté. [b]f♛/b] Il se dit aussi De celui qui aime les Beaux Arts sans les exercer. Amateur de …   Dictionnaire de l'Académie Française 1798

  • Amateur — Sm std. (17. Jh.) Entlehnung. Entlehnt aus frz. amateur in der Bedeutung Kunstliebhaber , dieses aus l. amātor Liebender , Nomen agentis zu l. amāre lieben, etwas gern tun . Heute nach dem Vorbild des Englischen als Internationalismus besonders… …   Etymologisches Wörterbuch der deutschen sprache

  • amateur — [am′ə chər, am′əchoor΄; am′ə tʉr΄, am′ə tər] n. [Fr < L amator, lover < pp. of amare, to love] 1. a person who engages in some art, science, sport, etc. for the pleasure of it rather than for money; a nonprofessional; specif., an athlete… …   English World dictionary

  • amateur — Amateur. s. m. v. Qui aime. Il ne se dit que pour marquer l affection qu on a pour les choses, & non celle qu on a pour les personnes. Amateur de la vertu, de la gloire des lettres, des arts. amateur des bons livres, des tableaux. amateur des… …   Dictionnaire de l'Académie française

  • amateur — (plural amateurs; del francés; pronunciamos amater ) adjetivo,sustantivo masculino y femenino 1. Que se dedica a una actividad por afición y no profesionalmente: Es un tenista amateur. Es un equipo de amateurs. 2. Pragmática: insulto. [ …   Diccionario Salamanca de la Lengua Española

  • amateur — (n.) 1784, one who has a taste for (something), from Fr. amateur lover of, from L. amatorem (nom. amator) lover, agent noun from amatus, pp. of amare to love (see AMY (Cf. Amy)). Meaning dabbler (as opposed to professional) is from 1786. As an… …   Etymology dictionary

  • Amateur — Amateur: Das seit dem 17. Jh. bezeugte Fremdwort bezeichnete zunächst den Kunstliebhaber und Kunstfreund, allerdings mit dem leicht verächtlichen Nebensinn des Dilettantischen. Erst von der Mitte des 19. Jh.s an kommt die heute (auch im Sport)… …   Das Herkunftswörterbuch

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