Love \Love\ (l[u^]v), n. [OE. love, luve, AS. lufe, lufu; akin
to E. lief, believe, L. lubet, libet, it pleases, Skr. lubh
to be lustful. See {Lief}.]
1. A feeling of strong attachment induced by that which
delights or commands admiration; pre["e]minent kindness or
devotion to another; affection; tenderness; as, the love
of brothers and sisters.
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Of all the dearest bonds we prove
Thou countest sons' and mothers' love
Most sacred, most Thine own. --Keble.
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2. Especially, devoted attachment to, or tender or passionate
affection for, one of the opposite sex.
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He on his side
Leaning half-raised, with looks of cordial love
Hung over her enamored. --Milton.
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3. Courtship; -- chiefly in the phrase to make love, i. e.,
to court, to woo, to solicit union in marriage.
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Demetrius . . .
Made love to Nedar's daughter, Helena,
And won her soul. --Shak.
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4. Affection; kind feeling; friendship; strong liking or
desire; fondness; good will; -- opposed to {hate}; often
with of and an object.
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Love, and health to all. --Shak.
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Smit with the love of sacred song. --Milton.
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The love of science faintly warmed his breast.
--Fenton.
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5. Due gratitude and reverence to God.
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Keep yourselves in the love of God. --Jude 21.
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6. The object of affection; -- often employed in endearing
address; as, he held his love in his arms; his greatest
love was reading. "Trust me, love." --Dryden.
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Open the temple gates unto my love. --Spenser.
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7. Cupid, the god of love; sometimes, Venus.
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Such was his form as painters, when they show
Their utmost art, on naked Lores bestow. --Dryden.
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Therefore do nimble-pinioned doves draw Love.
--Shak.
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8. A thin silk stuff. [Obs.] --Boyle.
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9. (Bot.) A climbing species of C{lematis} ({Clematis Vitalba}).
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10. Nothing; no points scored on one side; -- used in
counting score at tennis, etc.
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He won the match by three sets to love. --The
Field.
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11. Sexual intercourse; -- a euphemism.
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Note: Love is often used in the formation of compounds, in
most of which the meaning is very obvious; as,
love-cracked, love-darting, love-killing, love-linked,
love-taught, etc.
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{A labor of love}, a labor undertaken on account of regard
for some person, or through pleasure in the work itself,
without expectation of reward.
{Free love}, the doctrine or practice of consorting with one
of the opposite sex, at pleasure, without marriage. See
{Free love}.
{Free lover}, one who avows or practices free love.
{In love}, in the act of loving; -- said esp. of the love of
the sexes; as, to be in love; to fall in love.
{Love apple} (Bot.), the tomato.
{Love bird} (Zool.), any one of several species of small,
short-tailed parrots, or parrakeets, of the genus
{Agapornis}, and allied genera. They are mostly from
Africa. Some species are often kept as cage birds, and are
celebrated for the affection which they show for their
mates.
{Love broker}, a person who for pay acts as agent between
lovers, or as a go-between in a sexual intrigue. --Shak.
{Love charm}, a charm for exciting love. --Ld. Lytton.
{Love child}. an illegitimate child. --Jane Austen.
{Love day}, a day formerly appointed for an amicable
adjustment of differences. [Obs.] --Piers Plowman.
--Chaucer.
{Love drink}, a love potion; a philter. --Chaucer.
{Love favor}, something given to be worn in token of love.
{Love feast}, a religious festival, held quarterly by some
religious denominations, as the Moravians and Methodists,
in imitation of the agap[ae] of the early Christians.
{Love feat}, the gallant act of a lover. --Shak.
{Love game}, a game, as in tennis, in which the vanquished
person or party does not score a point.
{Love grass}. [G. liebesgras.] (Bot.) Any grass of the genus
{Eragrostis}.
{Love-in-a-mist}. (Bot.)
(a) An herb of the Buttercup family ({Nigella Damascena})
having the flowers hidden in a maze of finely cut
bracts.
(b) The West Indian {Passiflora foetida}, which has
similar bracts.
{Love-in-idleness} (Bot.), a kind of violet; the small pansy.
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A little western flower,
Before milk-white, now purple with love's wound;
And maidens call it love-in-idleness. --Shak.
{Love juice}, juice of a plant supposed to produce love.
--Shak.
{Love knot}, a knot or bow, as of ribbon; -- so called from
being used as a token of love, or as a pledge of mutual
affection. --Milman.
{Love lass}, a sweetheart.
{Love letter}, a letter of courtship. --Shak.
{Love-lies-bleeding} (Bot.), a species of amaranth
({Amarantus melancholicus}).
{Love match}, a marriage brought about by love alone.
{Love potion}, a compounded draught intended to excite love,
or venereal desire.
{Love rites}, sexual intercourse. --Pope
{Love scene}, an exhibition of love, as between lovers on the
stage.
{Love suit}, courtship. --Shak.
{Of all loves}, for the sake of all love; by all means.
[Obs.] "Mrs. Arden desired him of all loves to come back
again." --Holinshed.
{The god of love}, or {The Love god}, Cupid.
{To make love}, to engage in sexual intercourse; -- a
euphemism.
{To make love to}, to express affection for; to woo. "If you
will marry, make your loves to me." --Shak.
{To play for love}, to play a game, as at cards, without
stakes. "A game at piquet for love." --Lamb.
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Syn: Affection; friendship; kindness; tenderness; fondness;
delight.
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