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lovey

[luhv-ee]
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noun Chiefly British Informal.
  1. sweetheart; dear: used as a term of endearment.
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Origin of lovey

First recorded in 1725–35; love + -ey2
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for lovey

Historical Examples

  • There wa'n't nobody else; the world was all Reuben 'n' all Lovey to them.

    The Village Watch-Tower

    (AKA Kate Douglas Riggs) Kate Douglas Wiggin

  • Babies are common enough to most folks, but Lovey was diff'rent.

    The Village Watch-Tower

    (AKA Kate Douglas Riggs) Kate Douglas Wiggin

  • "Me and Bart having written our names, lovey," put in Deborah.

    The Opal Serpent

    Fergus Hume

  • I ought to know, my own lovey pet, that we can trust you in everything.

    Cradock Nowell, Vol. 1 (of 3)

    Richard Doddridge Blackmore

  • Lovey, Auntie doesn't like to see you wearing a pin like that!

    Saturday's Child

    Kathleen Norris

British Dictionary definitions for lovey

lovey

noun
  1. British informal another word for love (def. 11)
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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

Word Origin and History for lovey

affectionate pet name, 1731, from love (n.) + -y (3). Extended form lovey-dovey attested from 1819 (n.), 1847 (adj.).

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper