Lovers

How to spell lovers

6 letters · 2 syllables

How to pronounce lovers

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does lovers mean?

1. nounTwo people who are in a romantic or sexual relationship with each other.
2. nounPeople who are very fond of, or enthusiastic about, a particular thing.

Lovers in a sentence

• The two lovers met secretly in a quiet cafe near the station.

• The festival draws thousands of music lovers every summer.

• The novel follows a pair of young lovers separated by the war.

• Dog lovers gathered in the park for the annual show.

Where does lovers come from?

Language of origin: Germanic

This is the plural of 'lover', which is built on the native English verb and noun 'love'. That comes from Old English 'lufu', meaning affection or fondness, which traces back to a Germanic root and ultimately to an ancient Indo-European root meaning 'to desire' or 'to hold dear'; the same root gives us the Latin 'libet' (it pleases) and survives in 'libido'. The agent suffix '-er', also from Old English, turns the verb into 'one who loves', and the '-s' simply marks the plural. The word has been used for those in a romantic or sexual relationship since the medieval period, and more loosely for any devoted enthusiast. The spelling is straightforward, though the unstressed second syllable and the silent role of the 'e' in 'love' can trip a careless writer into 'lovvers' or 'luvers'.

How the word is built

• love (from Old English lufu: love, affection)
• -er (agent noun: one who does)
• -s (plural)