A hobby horse is a wooden or wickerwork toy made to be ridden like a real horse. From this came the phrase “riding a hobby-horse”, meaning “to follow a favorite pastime”, and in turn, hobby in the modern sense of recreation.
Hobby practiced for the benefit and enjoyment, not financial gain. Examples include collecting, creative and artistic activities, making, tinkering, sports and adult education. Engaging in a hobby can lead to knowledge, skills substantial gains,edge and experience. However, personal fulfillment is the goal. People enjoy participating in competitive hobbies such as athletics, hockey, tennis etc.
What is a hobby for some professions for others: a chef can enjoy playing computer games as a hobby, while a professional game tester might enjoy cooking. In general, people who do things for fun, not remuneration, is called an amateur, which is different from a professional.
Amateur astronomers often make meaningfulcontributions to the profession. It is not entirely uncommon for a hobbyist to be the first to discover a celestial body or event.
In English, nouns are often applied to people who obsessively demeaning jacket pursue a particular hobby that otherwise considered boring, such as train spotting or stamp collecting.