romance
Passion and mystery
Romance is a feeling of excitement and mystery associated with love, or a love affair itself: a summer romance, Is there any romance left in your marriage?
The word extends to idealized or sentimental treatment of a subject: the romance of the Old West.
As a verb, to romance someone is to court them or try to win them over.
A romance novel centers on a love story, typically with an emotionally satisfying ending. (Capitalized Romance describes languages descended from Latin.)
Warm emotional attachment
- devotionDeep, loyal commitment
- tendernessGentle, caring quality
- intimacyEmotional closeness between people
- bondBinding tie or connection
cherish · adoration · amour · attachment · fidelity · partnership · togetherness · soulmate
Intense emotional warmth
- desireIntense wanting
- yearningIntense prolonged craving
- longingIntense, persistent desire
- fervorIntense emotional intensity
ecstasy · obsession · heat · fire · torrid · smoldering · sensuality · magnetism
Romantic pursuit of another
- flirtingPlayfully showing romantic interest
- suitorOne who seeks affection
- serenadeOutdoor romantic performance
- chivalryKnightly code of honor
betrothal · matchmaking · engagement · proposing · admirer · pursuit · charm · dating
Seeking journey for something
- journeyTravel from place to place
- odysseyExtended adventurous journey
- voyageJourney by sea
- expeditionOrganized exploratory journey
wanderlust · discovery · escape · heroism · legend · fantasy · epic · swashbuckling
Longing for the past
- melancholySubdued, lasting sadness
- wistfulnessTender sadness for absence
- schmaltzPoultry fat or sentimentality
- pathosPity-evoking quality
poignancy · dreaminess · idealization · bittersweet · starry-eyed · moonlit · candlelit · sunset
New and unusual
- bodice-ripperSensational romantic fiction
- potboilerWork made for money
- HarlequinMasked comic servant
- melodramaSensational, emotionally overwrought drama
soap-opera · tearjerker · happily-ever-after · meet-cute · rom-com · paperback · bestseller · heroine
affection
Warm emotional attachment
- devotionDeep, loyal commitment
- tendernessGentle, caring quality
- intimacyEmotional closeness between people
bond · cherish · adoration · amour · attachment · fidelity · partnership · togetherness · soulmate · beloved
ardor
Intense emotional warmth
fervor · ecstasy · obsession · heat · fire · torrid · smoldering · sensuality · magnetism
wooing
Romantic pursuit of another
- flirtingPlayfully showing romantic interest
- suitorOne who seeks affection
- serenadeOutdoor romantic performance
chivalry · betrothal · matchmaking · engagement · proposing · admirer · pursuit · charm · dating · gallantry
quest
Seeking journey for something
expedition · wanderlust · discovery · escape · heroism · legend · fantasy · epic · swashbuckling · dashing
nostalgia
Longing for the past
- melancholySubdued, lasting sadness
- wistfulnessTender sadness for absence
- schmaltzPoultry fat or sentimentality
pathos · poignancy · dreaminess · idealization · bittersweet · starry-eyed · moonlit · candlelit · sunset · fairy-tale
novel
New and unusual
- bodice-ripperSensational romantic fiction
- potboilerWork made for money
- HarlequinMasked comic servant
melodrama · soap-opera · tearjerker · happily-ever-after · meet-cute · rom-com · paperback · bestseller · heroine · hero
- booksnovel, textbooks, study guides, book, paperback
- genresaction, comedy, detective fiction, fantasy, horror
- Novelsnovel, To Kill a Mockingbird, Frankenstein, Pride and Prejudice, The Great Gatsby
- relationshipsfriends, family, friend, flirting, closeness
- book genresfiction, novels, nonfiction, mystery, thriller
- film genreshorror, comedy, drama, action, animation
romanceplatonic
Friendly without romance
friendship · companionship · platonic love · brotherly love · sisterly love
romancerealism
Accepting things as they are
truth · nonfiction · documentary · naturalism · fact
- romantic comedyHumorous love story genre
- romantic obsessionFixated longing for another
- historical romanceLove story set historically
- Roman numeralsAlphabetic number system
- romantic dinnerIntimate meal for two
- romance novelistAuthor of love stories
romantic, roman, unromantic, romances, Roman, romancing, romanticize, romanticism, romanced