Added 8 October 2026
love
/ˈlʌv/ noun
In Latin: amor, cāritās Wiktionary
noun Definition from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about love at Wordnik → Where our words come from →
verb
-
To have a strong affection for (someone or something).
I love my spouse. I love you! I love that song!
-
To need, thrive on.
Mold loves moist, dark places.
-
To be strongly inclined towards something; an emphatic form of like.
I love walking barefoot on wet grass; I'd love to join the team; I love what you've done with your hair
noun
-
Zero, no score.
So that’s fifteen-love to Kournikova.
- Nothing; no recompense.
verb
- Alternative form of lofe (“to praise, sell”).
Origin
From Middle English love, luve, from Old English lufu, from Proto-West Germanic *lubu, from Proto-Germanic *lubō, from Proto-Indo-European *lewbʰ- (“love, care, desire”). The close of a letter sense is presumably a truncation of With love or the like. Eclipsed non-native English amour (“love”), borrowed from Norman amour (“love”).
From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)