affectation

1. (with of, now somewhat rare) An ostentatious fondness for something.Examples: "The grace diuineſt Mercvrie hath done me, / In this vouchſafde diſcouerie of himſelfe, / Binds my obſeruance in the vtmoſt terme / Of ſatisfaction, to his godly will: / Though I profeſſe (without the affectation / Of an enforc’d, and form’d auſteritie) / I could be willing to enioy no place / With ſo vnequall natures."; "Her upper part of decent diſcipline / Shew’d affecation of an ancient line: / And fathers, councils, church and churches head, / Were on her reverend Phylacteries read."; "While for some, women’s lack of knowledge is a matter for censure, throughout the century both male and female writers emphasize that affectation of knowledge, for example when it is not properly assimilated (Du Bosc 1633: 78), and above all pedantry from women, are far more unacceptable."countablerareuncountablewith-of