romance1
- a novel, movie, or genre of popular fiction in which characters fall in love or begin a romantic relationship (often used attributively): We knew it was a romance, so we were expecting a happy ending. Romance novels are popular escapist entertainment.
- a novel or other prose narrative depicting heroic or marvelous deeds, pageantry, romantic exploits, etc., usually in a historical or imaginary setting.
- the colorful world, life, or conditions depicted in such tales.
- a medieval narrative, originally one in verse and in some Romance dialect, treating of heroic, fantastic, or supernatural events, often in the form of allegory.
- a baseless, made-up story, usually full of exaggeration or fanciful invention.
- a romantic spirit, sentiment, emotion, or desire.
- romantic character or quality.
- a romantic affair or experience; a love affair.
- (initial capital letter) Also Romanic. Also called Romance languages. the group of Italic Indo-European languages descended since a.d. 800 from Latin, as French, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Romanian, Provençal, Catalan, Rhaeto-Romanic, Sardinian, and Ladino. Abbreviation: Rom.
- to invent or relate romances; indulge in fanciful or extravagant stories or daydreams.
- to think or talk romantically.
- Informal.
- to court or woo romantically; treat with ardor or chivalrousness: He's currently romancing a very attractive widow.
- to court the favor of or make overtures to; play up to: They need to romance the local business community if they expect to do business here.
- (initial capital letter) Also Romanic. of, relating to, or noting Romance: a Romance language.
Origin of romance1
Synonyms
See more synonyms for on Thesaurus.comromance2
- Music. a short, simple melody, vocal or instrumental, of tender character.
- Spanish Literature. a short epic poem, especially a historical ballad.
Origin of romance2
Related Words
affair, love, relationship, fling, fascination, enchantment, liaison, passion, attachment, flirtation, amour, courtship, intrigue, story, novel, fiction, tale, fantasy, lyric, idealizationExamples from the Web for romance
Contemporary Examples
The girls ran in the same circle (Palmolive was also in the Flowers of Romance) and the group was looking for a guitarist.
This is where the sporadic and hectic handling of the romance in the movies fails.
Team Peeta or Team Gale: Why the ‘Hunger Games’ Love Triangle Ruins ‘Mockingjay – Part 1’Kevin Fallon
November 28, 2014
But it was fun to not write people as people, but missiles and machines as people—with feelings, and arguments, and romance.
The Renegade: Robert Downey Sr. on His Classic Films, Son’s Battle with Drugs, and Bill CosbyMarlow Stern
November 26, 2014
Like all romance in The Twilight Zone, it ends well for neither party, but especially bad for the man.
The romance eclipses as the couple rides those beautiful white steeds down a path lined by evergreens.
Historical Examples
Seasickness takes away all the romance that poets have invested it with.
Brave and BoldHoratio Alger
I was full of romance and hope; now I've no romance, little hope, and some wrinkles.
But Mr. Thomson's contributions may fairly be said to have exhausted the "romance" of the road.
De Libris: Prose and VerseAustin Dobson
That was why Tillie's romance had only paraded itself before her and had gone by.
KMary Roberts Rinehart
A year ago her half promise to Joe had gratified her sense of romance.
KMary Roberts Rinehart
romance
- a love affair, esp an intense and happy but short-lived affair involving young people
- love, esp romantic love idealized for its purity or beauty
- a spirit of or inclination for adventure, excitement, or mystery
- a mysterious, exciting, sentimental, or nostalgic quality, esp one associated with a place
- a narrative in verse or prose, written in a vernacular language in the Middle Ages, dealing with strange and exciting adventures of chivalrous heroes
- any similar narrative work dealing with events and characters remote from ordinary life
- the literary genre represented by works of these kinds
- (in Spanish literature) a short narrative poem, usually an epic or historical ballad
- a story, novel, film, etc, dealing with love, usually in an idealized or sentimental way
- an extravagant, absurd, or fantastic account or explanation
- a lyrical song or short instrumental composition having a simple melody
- (intr) to tell, invent, or write extravagant or romantic fictions
- (intr) to tell extravagant or improbable lies
- (intr) to have romantic thoughts
- (intr) (of a couple) to indulge in romantic behaviour
- (tr) to be romantically involved with
Word Origin
Romance
- denoting, relating to, or belonging to the languages derived from Latin, including Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and Romanian
- denoting a word borrowed from a Romance languagethere are many Romance words in English
- this group of languages; the living languages that belong to the Italic branch of the Indo-European family
Word Origin and History for romance
n.
c.1300, "a story, written or recited, of the adventures of a knight, hero, etc.," often one designed principally for entertainment," from Old French romanz "verse narrative" (Modern French roman), originally an adverb, "in the vernacular language," from Vulgar Latin *romanice scribere "to write in a Romance language" (one developed from Latin instead of Frankish), from Latin Romanicus "of or in the Roman style," from Romanus "Roman" (see Roman).
The sense evolution is because medieval vernacular tales usually told chivalric adventures full of marvelous incidents and heroic deeds. In reference to literary works, often in Middle English meaning ones written in French but also applied to native compositions. Literary sense extended by 1660s to "a love story." Meaning "adventurous quality" first recorded 1801; that of "love affair" is from 1916. Romance novel attested from 1964. Cf. Romance (adj.).
v.
late 14c., "recite a narrative," from Old French romancier "narrate in French; translate into French," from romanz (see romance (n.)). Later "invent fictitious stories" (1670s), then "be romantically enthusiastic" (1849); meaning "court as a lover" is from 1938, probably from romance (n.). Related: Romanced; romancing.
Romance
adj.
mid-14c., "French; in the vernacular language of France" (contrasted to Latin), from Old French romanz "French; vernacular," from Late Latin Romanice, from Latin Romanicus (see Roman). Extended 1610s to other modern tongues derived from Latin (Spanish, Italian, etc.); thus "pertaining to the languages which arose out of the Latin language of the provinces of Rome." Cf. romance (n.).
romance
In traditional literary terms, a narration of the extraordinary exploits of heroes, often in exotic or mysterious settings. Most of the stories of King Arthur (see also Arthur) and his knights are romances.
The term romance has also been used for stories of mysterious adventures, not necessarily of heroes. Like the heroic kind of romance, however, these adventure romances usually are set in distant places. William Shakespeare's play The Tempest is this kind of romance.
Today, a novel concerned mainly with love is often called a romance. Romances are frequently published in paperback series.