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tough love

American

noun

a mixture of toughness and warmth used in a relationship, especially with an adolescent.

tough love British

noun

the practice of taking a stern attitude towards a relative or friend suffering from an addiction, etc, to help the addict overcome the problem

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of tough love

First recorded in 1977; after Toughlove, a network of support groups

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.

See Examples For:

tough love

Still, she delivered some Kirkian tough love when she urged the audience to use their unattached time to seek self-improvement.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 11, 2026

Nadal was coached by his uncle Toni from the age of three with a tough love approach.

From BBC ● May 29, 2026

In response to Reddit’s tough love, Parkins decluttered the house, had new listing photos taken and cut the asking price.

From MarketWatch ● May 13, 2026

Tolkan was also well known for drilling Maverick and Goose with swift reprimands and tough love between puffs of his cigar as their commanding officer, Tom “Stinger” Jardian, in the 1986 blockbuster “Top Gun.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 30, 2026

I loved his tough love, humor, and that we were the same age.

From "Proud" by Ibtihaj Muhammad

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023