tough love

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noun

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

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TAKE JOY IN ACING THIS QUIZ ON “PRIDE” SYNONYMS

Hold your head up high as you embark on this quiz that explores some of the synonyms and meanings of “pride.”

Question 1 of 7

What does "dignity" mean?

showing self-respect

treating others with kindness

acting selfishly

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Origin of tough love

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

Words nearby tough love

tough break, toughen, toughie, toughish, tough it out, tough love, tough-minded, toughness, tough nut, tough pitch, tough row to hoe

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use tough love in a sentence

A veteran of the first Iraq war in the early 1990s, he was 10 years older than most of his charges, and he treated them with a father’s tough love.
In the shadow of the towers: Five lives and a world transformed|Joby Warrick, Souad Mekhennet|September 2, 2021|Washington Post
What happened to true love knows no boundaries and all that?
Freaking Out About Age Gaps in Gay Relationships Is Homophobic|Samantha Allen|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
“I love my job and I love my city and I am committed to the work here,” he said in a statement.
The Golden State Preps for the ‘Red Wedding’ of Senate Races|David Freedlander|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
And we have a lot of great guests this season: Greta Gerwig, Natasha Lyonne, Olivia Wilde, Steve Buscemi is back—I love that guy.
Coffee Talk with Fred Armisen: On ‘Portlandia,’ Meeting Obama, and Taylor Swift’s Greatness|Marlow Stern|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST

You just travel light with carry-on luggage, go to cities that you love, and get to hang out with all your friends.
Coffee Talk with Fred Armisen: On ‘Portlandia,’ Meeting Obama, and Taylor Swift’s Greatness|Marlow Stern|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Terrorism is bad news anywhere, but especially rough on Odessa, where the city motto seems to be “make love, not war.”
Is Putin Turning to Terrorism in Ukraine?|Anna Nemtsova|January 6, 2015|DAILY BEAST
In this case, I suspect, there was co-operant a strongly marked childish characteristic, the love of producing an effect.
Children's Ways|James Sully
The well-known "cock and bull" stories of small children are inspired by this love of strong effect.
Children's Ways|James Sully
Women generally consider consequences in love, seldom in resentment.
Pearls of Thought|Maturin M. Ballou
And as she hesitated between obedience to one and duty toward the other, her life, her love and future was in the balance.
The Homesteader|Oscar Micheaux
Nothing but an extreme love of truth could have hindered me from concealing this part of my story.
Gulliver's Travels|Jonathan Swift

British Dictionary definitions for tough love

tough love

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