Do we overuse the word love?

A few months ago, love was my word of the week. In the books I was reading that week, each book used the word LOVE at least fifteen times. Fifteen. And most of these books weren’t romances- they were often just books about anything but love. Yet…the word kept cropping up…

Do you know how many things we “love” on a daily basis? Food, clothes, smells, the word love…

Can we come up with alternate words to use instead of love, because can we really love all the things on the same level? If we keep using a word to explain everything, doesn’t the word lose its power? Should we be using the same word that we use to describe McDonald’s fries to describe how much we want to be with someone?

I love you and want to marry you.

I love french fries.

Though I know that I have said that I love fries…and I really feel that I mean that I LOVE fries…and maybe, just maybe, I want to marry the fries…should I be using the same word to describe how I feel about my Husband?

Admittedly, sometimes I really do love french fries more than my Husband…but still…

Shouldn’t I be using a different word?

What are some other words that we can substitute for LOVE?

Synonyms for love (per our friends at Merriam-Webster.com)

Words Related to love

I delight in fries.

I adore the smell of the lemon essential oil diffuser on my desk.

I cherish my favorite little black dress.

Doesn’t mixing up the words we use make life just a tiny bit juicier?

What are examples of things you say that you LOVE, and what are other words that you can substitute in?

You may begin…

61 thoughts on “Love love love etc”

  2. I use the word love way too much. It has become an easy catch-all word and I acknowledge that it makes me a lazy thinker and writer! I think I need to jot down your list and have it handy each time I want to use the word love… I truly admire (see what I did there) that you pointed out love’s overuse in my personal lexicon.

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  3. One of my University professors of German language said that North Americans use the word love for everything, just like you described, and that it was unusual for her as a German speaking native to be exposed to that word as much as she was. “Kids love toys or ice cream, adults love purses and shoes, it’s perplexing”, she said. 😄

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  8. I agree with Darlene. I’m not generally one for quoting song lyrics but, from “Chasing Cars: “those three words, are said too much, but not enough…

    I appreciate the care with which you make my tea (would be said to Himself)
    I adore my grandchildren
    I revel in an excellent pink champagne ❤

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  11. I actually use the “dig”, so I can see continuing to use dig for material/conceptual things and love for people. As in I dig that my wife can be so generous, and I dig the low cal/sugar treats she bakes but I love her.

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  14. Regarding food…I savor, relish, and enjoy a great salad. My mouth waters thinking about cheesecake …
    I love my family. However, I am fond of reading. But, honestly, I simply love life. I cherish each enjoyable moment.

    I admit, I get lazy and overuse the word love. But, the truth is, as someone with a reoccurring illness, everything has become so special. I’ve learned to appreciate and magnify little moments. So, I really do love a great deal of things these days. And often, rather than stretching my medicated brain ( which isn’t quite as sharp on chemo drugs) that I love sunshine, lollipops and rainbows too… just listen to Lesley Gore…

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  17. Absolutely we overuse “love,” but I think it is because we really don’t have special words for the different kinds of love. We should have one for God, one for our romantic partner, one for friends, etc. I was trying to think of one for God. In popular Christian songs, we frequently use the word “adore.” That is good, but I also adore anything purple. I am passionate about it, which brings adore back into the “love” class with the potential for overuse. I worship God, but that is an action that shows my love. This could go on forever circling back on itself. I think the most important thing that has emerged from your discussion is that there are many rich words that can be used to express how we feel about something even though they don’t always exactly fit up with what we want to say.

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  19. As a writer, I always try to use unique words when describing things. Love is just one of many examples; I was going to say “hate” is the same way, but somebody beat me to the punch. I hate watermelon, I hate being late, and I hate Adolph Hitler. But do I hate all of them equally? Of course not.

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  20. I agree that the word love has been overused to the point of making it almost meaningless. There are other words to describe how we feel about our favorite food, etc. Although I don’t find the overuse of love nearly as annoying as the overuse of the word “obsessed.” It drives me nuts when people say, “I’ve discovered this new restaurant, and I’m obsessed!” or something like that. Really? You think about a restaurant every night and day, to the detriment of the rest of your life? I doubt it…..

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  22. I don’t know LA. I’ve had this convo with my husband, and I maintain that love is just fine. I love crab legs, and I love him, and I love my daughters, and I love writing, and I love the beach, and even though I don’t love them the same, I still love each one ❤

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    1. I hadn’t realized how often the word is used till I did a search in books. I think if we keep using it, the meaning gets diluted, and as someone said, it becomes slang

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      2. I understand that. But in theory, if my husband said he loved his coffee, his wireless keyboard, his running shoes, his cheap readers, the donuts at the place down the block, at show, college football and me…I’d be wary

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  23. Pingback: Love Slang – Waking up on the Wrong Side of 50

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