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Lover vs Darling - What's the difference?

lover | darling |

As a noun lover

is one who loves and cares for another person in a romantic way; a sweetheart, love, soulmate, boyfriend, or girlfriend.

As a proper noun darling is

, originally a nickname from darling.

lover

English

Alternative forms

* (l) (dialectal or obsolete)

Noun

(en noun)
  • One who loves and cares for another person in a romantic way; a sweetheart, love, soulmate, boyfriend, or girlfriend.
  • * Shakespeare
  • Love is blind, and lovers cannot see / The pretty follies that themselves commit.
  • A sexual partner.
  • A person who loves something.
  • a lover of fine wines
    a lover of his country
  • All right, me lover?

    Synonyms

    * (one who loves and cares) love, love interest, sweetheart, significant other, see also * (sexual partner) See * (person who loves something) connoisseur * (any friend) See

    Derived terms

    * lover's lane / lovers' lane

    darling

    English

    Alternative forms

    * (informal) *

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • A person who is dear to one.
  • *{{quote-book, year=1959, author=(Georgette Heyer), title=(The Unknown Ajax), chapter=1
  • , passage=But Richmond, his grandfather's darling , after one thoughtful glance cast under his lashes at that uncompromising countenance appeared to lose himself in his own reflections.}}
  • * {{quote-news, year=2011, date=December 15, author=Felicity Cloake, work=Guardian
  • , title= How to cook the perfect nut roast , passage=If there's such a thing as pariah food – a recipe shunned by mainstream menus, mocked to near extinction and consigned to niche hinterlands for evermore – then the nut roast, a dish whose very name has become a watchword for sawdusty disappointment, is surely a strong contender. One of the darlings of the early vegetarian movement (particularly in its even sadder form, the cutlet), it was on the menu at John Harvey Kellogg's Battle Creek Sanitarium [sic], and has since become the default Sunday option for vegetarians – and a default source of derision for everyone else.}}

    Synonyms

    * * * *

    Derived terms

    * media darling

    Adjective

    (er)
  • Dear; cherished.
  • She is my darling wife of twenty-two years.
  • charming
  • Well isn't that a darling little outfit she has on.

    Usage notes

    darlinger is rarely used.