Absence makes the heart grow fonder

Cultural  

1. Persons, places, or things become dearer to us when they are absent.

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absence makes the heart grow fonder Idioms  

1. Separation intensifies love, as in After a year in another country she accepted his proposal, so I guess absence makes the heart grow fonder, or, used ironically, The boss leaves earlier every day; oh well, absence makes the heart grow fonder. Although versions of this saying date from Roman times, it only became popular after Thomas Haynes Bayly used it as the last line of a song in The Isle of Beauty (1850). The opposite sentiment is expressed by familiarity breeds contempt.

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Example Sentences

The cliche that absence makes the heart grow fonder is apt here, in more ways than one.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 8, 2024

Of course, absence makes the heart grow fonder: her lead single “Yes, And?” brought her into new sonic territory — house-informed pop music — and immediately shot up to No. 1.

From Seattle Times • Mar. 3, 2024

Lexi, who hasn’t seen Mikey in a while, challenges the idea that absence makes the heart grow fonder, ordering him off the property.

From New York Times • Dec. 9, 2021

“It’s really cool to be back. What do they say, absence makes the heart grow fonder? Quite cheesy, but no, really, really cool,” said the 40-year-old Englishman, who is now ranked 14th in the world.

From Washington Times • Jan. 17, 2018

But Napoleon, insisting that absence makes the heart grow fonder, said his wife should remain behind.

From Little Journeys to the Homes of the Great - Volume 02 Little Journeys To the Homes of Famous Women by Hubbard, Elbert