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Valentine’s Day Vocabulary: 120 English Words and Phrases

Valentine’s Day only comes around once a year. But the relevant vocabulary for this holiday can be used all year round. 

Learn 120 Valentine’s Day vocabulary terms to help you connect with the special English speakers in your life.


English Verbs for Valentine’s Day

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To flirt

If you flirt with someone, you’re being playful with them because you’re attracted to them and you want to show that you like them. This could be verbally or by text or written communication, or even on social media with “likes” and comments.

Look at Rebecca flirting with Craig. It’s so obvious she likes him.

I know, she always flirts with him in math class.

To serenade

“To serenade” means to sing or play (typically romantic) music to someone as a gesture of love or affection. It’s a traditional way to express your feelings. It’s not uncommon to see singers or musicians serenading people in a restaurant on Valentine’s Day.

How was your Valentine’s Day dinner?

It was great until we were serenaded by a couple of men playing guitars. Everyone was looking at us and I was so embarrassed!

To admire

To admire someone means that you look up to them, respect them and in some cases love them.

You could admire your boyfriend or girlfriend (which is a stronger feeling) or you could admire your parents (respect them) because of what they’ve achieved. Some people even admire (look up to) famous people and want to be just like them.

I really admire the way you’re so nice and generous, even with strangers!

I admire my mom for everything she’s done. She’s a strong woman and has worked hard for our family.

To propose

When a person asks someone to marry them, he or she is proposing, which is short for “proposing marriage.”

There are a few other ways to refer to this action. You can say that someone “popped the question” —the question being “Will you marry me?” and the verb “pop” referring to it being a surprise.

You could also say that they “got down on one knee” (referring to the common action of kneeling with one knee on the ground to propose). 

Did you hear that Mark proposed to Sarah last night at dinner?

Wow! How did he pop the question?

Well, he had planned a romantic dinner for them at her favorite restaurant. After dessert, he got down on one knee and asked her to marry him.

To adore

 “To adore” means to regard someone with deep love and appreciation. It’s a sweet, poetic way to let someone know that they’re special to you. The noun for this verb is “adoration.” 

I absolutely adore you and I’m so happy to have you in my life.

Here are some additional verbs that are perfect for Valentine’s Day: 

AdjectiveExample
To love She loved him deeply.
To kiss They kissed passionately under the stars.
To embrace They embraced each other tightly.
To cherish They cherish every moment together.
To woo He tried to woo her with romantic gestures.
To treasure She treasures the love letters he wrote.
To date They're been dating for three months.
To cuddle They cuddled on the couch while watching a movie.
To whisper He whispered "You're beautiful" in her ear.
To dream They dream of a future together.
To dance They danced to their favorite song.
To write He wrote her a heartfelt love letter.
To smile She smiled at him from across the restaurant.
To gaze They gazed into each other's eyes lovingly.
To hold He held her hand as they walked.
To gift She gifted him a box of chocolates.
To promise They promised to be there for each other.
To share They share their hopes and dreams.
To communicate They communicate openly and honestly.
To support He supports her in everything she does.
To cook They cooked a romantic dinner together.
To surprise He surprised her with a weekend getaway.
To laugh They laughed together, sharing inside jokes.
To sing They sang love songs to each other.
To explore They love to explore new places together.
To connect They feel deeply connected to each other.
To hug They hugged goodbye at the end of their date.

Romantic Nouns in English 

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A flirt

A flirt is what we call a person who flirts a lot. Some people are natural flirts and just want to be playful; however, you have to be careful not to give someone the wrong impression as they may really think you’re interested in them!

Did you see Jack at the party last night?

Yeah, he’s such a flirt! He was chatting and laughing with all the girls.

Love

“Love” is actually a verb and a noun. When “like” just isn’t enough, we use “love” to express a deeper, more intense feeling. Some people write it as “luv” in text messages or when chatting online. While not technically correct, you might see it in casual environments like on social media.  

I love Valentine’s Day! It’s a great opportunity to celebrate all of the love in your life.

Bouquet

A bouquet is an arrangement of flowers. It’s a common gift on Valentine’s day as well as to congratulate someone, wish them well or let them know that you’re thinking about them when they’re going through a difficult time (for example, after the death of a loved one).

What a beautiful bouquet of flowers!

I know. Pete gave them to me for our 10-year anniversary.

Secret admirer

On Valentine’s Day, it’s not uncommon to receive a card, flowers or other gift that says “from your secret admirer” instead of the name of the person it’s from. A secret admirer is a person who may be too embarrassed or shy to tell you that they like you and would prefer to remain anonymous (unknown).

Someone sent me flowers for Valentine’s Day, but the card doesn’t say who they’re from.

Oooh, exciting, you’ve got a secret admirer!

Fiancé / fiancée

A fiancé is the man someone is engaged to. If you add an extra “e” to the end, it refers to an engaged woman. These words come from the French language and are pronounced the same, so they’re often mixed up. 

My parents are meeting my fiancé for the first time tomorrow. I’m so nervous!

Here are some more nouns you can use on Valentine’s Day or any time you want to turn up the romance:

NounExample
Heart She gave him a heart-shaped chocolate for Valentine's Day.
Roses He surprised her with a bouquet of red roses.
Chocolate A box of chocolates is a classic Valentine's Day gift.
Candy She gave him a bag of candy hearts and a nice bottle of wine.
Card All of the students decorated Valentine's Day cards to give to their classmates.
Cupid Cupid is the god of love in Roman mythology.
Romance Their romance blossomed under the moonlight.
Affection Their affection for each other was evident.
Date They planned a special date night for Valentine's Day.
Sweetheart She's my sweetheart and my best friend.
Passion Their passion for one another grew stronger with time.
Lingerie He bought some sexy lingerie for his wife on Valentine's Day.
Admiration He had great admiration for her kindness.
Relationship Their relationship was built on trust and understanding.
Gift She received a beautiful gift from her partner.
Harp The restaurant had a woman playing beautiful music on a harp.
Joy Being with her brought him immense joy.
Partner He's not just my partner; he's my soulmate.
Friendship Their friendship was the foundation of their love.
Commitment They made a commitment to be there for each other.
Embrace They shared a warm embrace before parting.
Tenderness The tenderness in their relationship was heartwarming.
Candle He lit some candles to make the dinner more romantic.
Unity Their unity made them an unbreakable couple.
Companionship Their companionship was their greatest treasure.
Reservation Hi, I'd like to make a reservation for next Wednesday night at 7:00 p.m., please. I'll need a table for two.
Heartthrob Did you see Ryan Gosling in Gangster Squad? He’s such a heartthrob!
Darling Hi, darling. I have a surprise for you tonight. Be ready at 7:00!
Engagement ring He proposed to her with a big diamond engagement ring.
Candlelit dinner Simon planned a romantic candlelit dinner for us on the rooftop.

Adjectives for Describing Your Feelings

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Lovesick

If you’re lovesick over someone, it means you think about them all the time. You might feel some tingling in your body or a fluttering in your stomach when you see them. Unfortunately, there’s no cure for lovesickness!

I just can’t get Jason out of my head. What’s wrong with me?

Nothing, you’re just a bit lovesick. You should tell him how you feel!

Romantic

“Romantic” is an adjective that can describe pretty much anything related to love or expressing love and affection. There are romantic movies (and romantic comedies, commonly referred to as “rom coms”), romantic songs, romantic dates and more. 

They had a romantic dinner in the backyard with candles and rose petals.

Heartfelt

This adjective means “sincere” or “deeply felt,” often in relation to emotions or sentiments. When an action, gesture or expression is described as “heartfelt,” it means that it comes from the heart.

She wrote me a heartfelt love letter to express her feelings.

Passionate

“Passionate” means having strong emotions, often associated with love and desire. It can also describe intense enthusiasm or devotion towards something or someone.

Their passionate kiss left no doubt about their love for each other.

Affectionate

This adjective means displaying warmth and tenderness, often through actions or words. It signifies a genuine and caring emotional connection between lovers, close friends or family members.

He’s really affectionate…he’s always hugging and kissing me or rubbing my shoulders.

If you need some more adjectives to describe all things related to love and desire, check out the list below:

AdjectiveExample
Tender Their tender moments made their love stronger.
Devoted They were devoted to each other's happiness.
Admiring She looked at him with an admiring gaze.
Lovely She wore a lovely red dress for their Valentine's Day date.
Intimate They shared an intimate dance in the moonlight.
Sweet They exchanged sweet messages all night.
Charming His charming smile won her heart.
Blissful They were in a blissful state of love.
Dreamy Their dreamy date felt like a fairy tale.
Tenderhearted She was a tenderhearted partner and always took care of him when he was sick.
Enchanted They felt enchanted by each other's presence.
Committed They were committed to a lifetime of love.
Playful She liked his playful manner because it made her feel like a kid again.
Endearing His generosity is one of his most endearing qualities.
Flirtatious His text messages were really flirtatious so she knew he had a crush on her.
Alluring Her alluring smile captivated his heart.
Kindhearted He was a kindhearted and caring partner.
Desirable She found him highly desirable and couldn't resist going out with him again.
Companionship Their companionship was their greatest treasure.

Common English Phrases for Valentine’s Day

balloons-that-spell-out-love

XOXO

When we sign a message with “xoxo” it means hugs and kisses. The “x’s” represent kisses and the “o’s” represent hugs. You might see different combinations of these two letters or just “x’s” for kisses. 

This letter combination is only used in writing and in texts or chatting and is not typically said out loud, unless someone is reading a letter or message. It’s the iconic sign-off used by the anonymous blogger in the popular series “Gossip Girl.” 

To have a crush on someone

If you have a crush on someone, it means you like them a lot and want to be more than friends with them. This is usually used between young people or when you’re attracted to a celebrity (your “celebrity crush”).

Additionally, you can say you’re crushing on” someone. It means the same thing as having a crush on them. 

It’s so obvious that you have a crush on Kelly! You always flirt with her.

Will you go out with me?

If you really like someone and want to spend more time with them, you can use this phrase to ask them out. It can refer to going out on a date, like for dinner or to see a movie, but it’s also used with younger people to refer to starting a relationship. 

Hey Julie, I’d really like to get to know you better. Will you go out with me on Saturday night?

To get engaged

If you get engaged, it means that your partner asked you to marry them and you said yes (or vice versa). There’s no set time that people spend engaged before they get married. It can be just a few months or even a few years. 

We got engaged a month ago, and we’re now planning our wedding for next summer.

Butterflies in your stomach

To have “butterflies in your stomach” is an idiomatic expression that means feeling nervous, anxious or excited about something. It’s characterized by a fluttery, slightly queasy sensation in the stomach, similar to the feeling of butterflies moving around.

If you like someone, you might feel butterflies in your stomach when you see or think about them.

Every time I see John I feel butterflies in my stomach. I think I really like him!

Here are some more English phrases you can use to charm your lover or compliment your friends:

PhraseExample
True love In the fairytale, she had to get a true love's kiss in order to wake up.
You complete me You complete me in every way.
Cupid's arrow Cupid's arrow struck my heart when I saw you.
My better half This is my wife. She's my better half!
Together forever We'll be together forever and always.
Hugs and kisses I'm sending you hugs and kisses!
Sweet nothing They whispered sweet nothings to each other.
Love conquers all I really believe that love is the answer to war and violence. Love conquers all.
Heart's desire You are my heart's desire.
Swept off my feet He swept me off my feet on our first date and we've been together ever since.
My one and only I have eyes for no one else but you. You're my one and only.
Love is in the air It's Valentine's Day and love is in the air!
Date night We have a date night at least twice a month.
A dream come true Meeting you was a dream come true.
Love story Our love story started 20 years ago when we met in college.
Heart of gold She has a heart of gold and makes everyone around her feel good.
Made for each other I really think we were made for each other. We compliment each other so well.
Love letters I still cherish the love letters you wrote to me.
The key to my heart You hold the key to my heart, my love.
Forever valentine You're my forever Valentine!
To fall in love We fell in love immediately and got engaged a few months later.
Love at first sight For me, it was love at first sight! As soon as I met your mom, I knew I wanted to marry her.
Be mine On Valentine's Day he gave me a nice card and a cookie that said "Be mine" on it.
Will you be my Valentine? I know it's cheesy, but will you be my Valentine?

These colloquial phrases can be very tricky to learn in English. To make this process easier, explore native content presented in a friendly and descriptive way.

For example, if you want to see love and Valentine’s Day vocabulary used in a natural context from film and TV, check out this video:

 

With this vocabulary, you can show someone how much you care about them in English!

For more romantic vocabulary and phrases, check out some English idioms about love next!

And One More Thing...

If you like learning English through movies and online media, you should also check out FluentU. FluentU lets you learn English from popular talk shows, catchy music videos and funny commercials, as you can see here:

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If you want to watch it, the FluentU app has probably got it.

The FluentU app and website makes it really easy to watch English videos. There are captions that are interactive. That means you can tap on any word to see an image, definition, and useful examples.

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