As a noun, a person who does an activity for enjoyment, not for pay or as a job. As an adjective, it can describe something done by non-professionals and sometimes suggests a lack of skill.
From French *amateur*, meaning “lover (of something),” from Latin *amātor* (“lover”), based on *amāre* (“to love”). It originally praised someone motivated by love of an activity rather than money.
“Amateur” literally means “lover,” so an amateur musician is, at root, someone who plays out of love. Only later did the word pick up the insult of being unskilled. It’s a powerful reminder that passion, not payment, is how many great journeys start.
'Amateur' has often been used dismissively, and in many fields women’s work was labeled 'amateur' even when it was expert, because they were excluded from formal positions. This contributed to devaluing women’s scientific, artistic, and athletic contributions.
Use 'amateur' strictly to denote non-paid or non-professional status, not lower competence, and be alert to historical patterns where women’s work was mislabeled as amateur.
["non-professional","community-based practitioner","enthusiast"]
When discussing 'amateur' contributions, highlight women and marginalized people whose unpaid or informal work significantly advanced fields.
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