Emily Dickinson Lexicon

FOND'NESS, n.

1. Foolishness; weakness; want of sense or judgment. [Obs.] Spenser.
2. Foolish tenderness.
3. Tender passion; warm affection. Her fondness for a certain earl / Began when I was but a girl. Swift.
4. Strong inclination or propensity; as, a fondness for vice or sin. Hammond.
5. Strong appetite or relish; as, fondness for ardent spirit, or for a particular kind of food. [It is now used chiefly in the three latter senses.]