love affair
Americannoun
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a romantic relationship or episode between lovers; an amour.
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an active enthusiasm for something.
my love affair with sailing.
noun
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a romantic or sexual relationship, esp a temporary one, between two people
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a great enthusiasm or liking for something
a love affair with ballet
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An intimate sexual relationship, as in They had a torrid love affair many years ago . This expression dates from about 1600, when it referred merely to the experiences connected with being in love. The current sense dates from the second half of the 1800s.
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A strong enthusiasm, as in We can't ignore America's love affair with the automobile . [Mid-1900s]
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of love affair
First recorded in 1585–95
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Individual investors’ yearslong love affair with the market’s biggest tech stocks is starting to cool off.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 20, 2026
Jacqueline, from Loughton in Essex, says her "love affair" with SW19 began in 1977 through listening to matches on the radio before her first visit with family in 1984.
From BBC ● Jul. 5, 2026
Many a teenage love affair began or ended there.
From Salon ● Jul. 3, 2026
Phillip McKnight’s love affair with Stratocaster guitars started at age 15 when he got a counterfeit version of the Fender icon—and an amp—for $120.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 27, 2026
Over the next weeks and months, Lefty watched from the Siberia of his side of the bed as this mother-infant love affair blossomed.
From "Middlesex: A Novel" by Jeffrey Eugenides
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
