fair-weather friendship
Good-times-only loyalty
A fair-weather friendship is one that exists only during easy, pleasant times.
Like fair-weather sailors who stay ashore when storms come, fair-weather friends disappear when you face difficulty or need support: I learned who my real friends were—most of those relationships turned out to be fair-weather friendships.
The term is always disparaging.
One who operates something
- parasiteOne exploiting a host
- leechBlood-feeding aquatic worm
- exploiterOne who uses unfairly
- moocherOne who cadges habitually
taker · sycophant · flatterer · hanger-on · social climber · gold-digger · freeloader · self-serving
Based on inference, not proof
- situationalDependent on circumstances
- unequalNot the same
- imbalancedUnevenly distributed or proportioned
- lopsidedUnequally balanced
Erratically disloyal in affection
- flakyCrumbly or unreliable
- undependableNot consistently trustworthy
- inconstantProne to fluctuation
- untrustworthyNot deserving of confidence
disloyal · unfaithful · capricious · wavering · uncommitted · inconsistent · sporadic · unpredictable
Without much depth
- insincereFeigning belief or feeling
- surface-levelConcerning only the outermost layer
- nominalIn designation only
- uninvestedNot financially or emotionally involved
casual acquaintance · detached · hollow · empty · fake · phony · pretense · lip service
user
One who operates something
moocher · taker · sycophant · flatterer · hanger-on · social climber · gold-digger · freeloader · self-serving · calculating
circumstantial
Based on inference, not proof
- situationalDependent on circumstances
- unequalNot the same
- imbalancedUnevenly distributed or proportioned
fickle
Erratically disloyal in affection
- flakyCrumbly or unreliable
- undependableNot consistently trustworthy
- inconstantProne to fluctuation
untrustworthy · disloyal · unfaithful · capricious · wavering · uncommitted · inconsistent · sporadic · unpredictable · abandonment
shallow
Without much depth
- insincereFeigning belief or feeling
- surface-levelConcerning only the outermost layer
- nominalIn designation only
casual acquaintance · uninvested · detached · hollow · empty · fake · phony · pretense · lip service · halfhearted
- opportunismcapitalizing, cashing in, self-serving, maneuvering, leveraging
fair-weather friendshiptrue friendship
Authentic, lasting mutual affection
through thick and thin · blood brothers · brotherhood · sisterhood
fairer, fairest, fairness, weather, weathered, weathering, weathers, weatherman, friend