carrying a torch
Loving from afar
Carrying a torch for someone means harboring romantic feelings for them, typically when those feelings are unrequited or the relationship has ended.
The phrase evokes the image of keeping a flame burning—hope or desire that persists despite circumstances.
He's still carrying a torch for his college sweetheart.
Someone who carries a torch often struggles to move on emotionally, holding onto attachment long after it serves them.
- piningAching with prolonged desire
- fidelityLoyalty or exactness
- infatuationShort-lived intense attraction
- secret crushUndisclosed romantic longing
- yearningIntense prolonged craving
old flame · heartbreak · allegiance · commitment · wistfulness · firebrand · devotion · flame · one-sided · obsession · melancholy · spark · nostalgia · steadfastness · keep the faith · never let go · perseverance · hope
- Lovesicklovesick, lovelorn, heartsick, pining, yearning
- infatuationcrush, infatuation, infatuated, smitten, first love
carrying a torchmoved on
Proceeded after pausing
letting go · gotten over · past it · closure · healed
carrying a torchlost interest
emotionally unavailable · apathetic · unattached · disinterested · loveless
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