Let's Talk About Love, Baby

Let's Talk About Love, Baby

From VOA Learning¹ English, this is Words and Their Stories.

In English, some people like to say that “Love makes the world go ‘round.” This means that of the many things we experience, love is the most important. And Valentine’s Day is a time to celebrate love.

Let’s start at the beginning.

Step 1: Meet someone

To be in love, you first have to meet someone special. When two people meet and really hit it off, they get along from the start. This is an informal expression – something used in everyday speech. To hit it off does not mean that you and the other person are in love. At least not yet!                                          

But let's say you meet someone and from the very first moment you set eyes on them, they seem to have a strange power over you. That is not simply hitting it off. That is what we call love at first sight.             

Another informal saying is to have a crush² on someone. Not only is crushing³ on someone informal, it is more likely to involve young people. So, you might hear a teenager say they have a crush on someone. A crush is usually not serious. A crush can also be called puppy⁴ love.

Again, these are all informal expressions. So it is better not to use these expressions in a formal way to talk about a love interest that is serious. 

If you are nervous about getting closer to the object of your affections⁵, you can say you admire them or love them from afar. This is something an adult might say.  

When you are smitten⁶ with someone, you think of that person all the time. You hang on every word they say. They are your one and only. And you only have eyes for them, which means everyone else seems to just disappear.

If you meet someone and fall head over heels in love, you fall in love … hard. True love can sweep you off your feet. Love can take your breath away. Love can make your heart beat faster and give you other physical symptoms that are similar to feeling sick.

Step 2: Become a couple

After you and that special someone are in a serious relationship, people might call you a match made in heaven. This does not mean that the two of you should be making plans for spending the afterlife together. And it doesn’t mean that you met in a house of worship⁷. A match made in heaven simply means two people have much in common or that each person makes the other better. 

Another expression that means the same thing is soul mate⁸. This is one way to describe a really close friend who understands you. If you love someone completely, you can say you love them with all your heart and soul.

“Heart and soul. I fell in love in with you heart and soul,

The way a fool would do -- madly, because you held me tight …”

Step 3: Marry or break-up?

If your love relationship is going well, that special someone may pop the question. That is, “Will you marry me?

But sometimes love does not make it down the aisle⁹. In other words, problems arise in the relationship before you get married.

If your relationship hits a difficult period, you can say it is on the rocks. This saying comes from boating. When a boat or ship is on the rocks, it runs aground and breaks apart. The expression “on the rocks” has been used to mean disasters since the late 1800s.

Neil Diamond sings about a relationship in trouble in his hit song, “Love on the Rocks.”

"Love on the rocks ain't no surprise

Pour me a drink,

And I'll tell you some lies,

Got nothing to lose,

So you just sing the blues¹⁰, all the time..."

Many relationships that are on the rocks end in a break-up.

But if your relationship ends, do not be sad for long. We have another expression in English: “It’s better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all.”

From VOA Learning English, I’m Anna Matteo. Happy Valentine's Day!

"And I will always love you ..."

Anna Matteo wrote this Words and Their Stories for VOA Learning English. George Grow was the editor.

1 learning   

n.学问，学识，学习；动词learn的现在分词

参考例句：

• When you are learning to ride a bicycle,you often fall off.初学骑自行车时，常会从车上掉下来。
• Learning languages isn't just a matter of remembering words.学习语言不仅仅是记些单词的事。

2 crush   

v.压垮，压倒，压服，镇压；压碎，碾碎

参考例句：

• This machine is made to crush the rock into powder.这台机器是用来把石头压成碎末的。
• You can't crush so many people into the classroom.不能让这么多人挤进教室。

3 crushing   

adj. 打破得支离破碎的, 使不能在站起来, 压倒的 v. 动词crush的现在分词形式

参考例句：

• a crushing defeat in the election 在选举中的惨败
• The attack on Pearl Harbor was a crushing calamity. 偷袭珍珠港（对美军来说）是一场毁灭性的灾难。

4 puppy   

n.小狗，幼犬

参考例句：

• You must school your puppy to obey you.你要训练你的小狗服从你。
• Their lively puppy frisks all over the house.他们的小狗在屋里到处欢快地蹦跳。

5 affections   

n.喜爱( affection的名词复数 )；感情喜爱爱慕之情；病

参考例句：

• He was undeserving of her affections. 他不配得到她的爱。
• The officer transferred his affections to the other girl. 那军官爱上了另一个姑娘。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 smitten   

猛打，重击，打击( smite的过去分词 )

参考例句：

• From the moment they met, he was completely smitten by her. 从一见面的那一刻起，他就完全被她迷住了。
• It was easy to see why she was smitten with him. 她很容易看出为何她为他倾倒。

7 worship   

n.崇拜，礼拜；v.崇拜，敬仰；做礼拜

参考例句：

• The Greeks used to worship several gods.过去，希腊人崇奉好几种神。
• Blind worship must be ended.盲目崇拜必须停止。

8 mate   

n.伙伴，同事；配偶；大副；v.(使)交配

参考例句：

• Where is the mate to this glove?这副手套的另一只在哪儿？
• She has been a faithful mate to him.她一直是他忠实的配偶。

9 aisle   

n.（教堂、教室、戏院等里的）过道，通道

参考例句：

• The aisle was crammed with people.过道上挤满了人。
• The girl ushered me along the aisle to my seat.引座小姐带领我沿着通道到我的座位上去。

10 blues   

n.抑郁，沮丧；布鲁斯音乐

参考例句：

• She was in the back of a smoky bar singing the blues.她在烟雾弥漫的酒吧深处唱着布鲁斯歌曲。
• He was in the blues on account of his failure in business.他因事业失败而意志消沉。