I Love You

[Flare]

Some friends and I were talking about saying I Love You over lunch. One of my friends was saying how it has lost its meaning between him and his girlfriend. She tells him "love you" every time she gets off the phone with him, no matter how short the call. He's tired of it and doesn't think it means anything anymore, that it's more of a ritual. Do you guys agree that saying I Love You can lose it's meaning? Thoughts? Opinions?

Personally, the more I think about it, the more I think it can. What my friend, "Steve", says is true. It can lose it's meaning. After a while, you don't even think about it and what it truly means to you and the person you're saying it to.
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The immortal chickens shall rule the world!!

[Aurelien]

To me, it really depends on case by case.

For your friend's case, the "I love you" at the end of short phone calls is clearly more like a "see you again". So it is clealy that it's just a habit/ritual on how to end a phone conversation rather than meant as a proper expression of love.

A simple analogy for this is how I used the term "lol" when chatting on the internet. It was initially meant as "laughing out loud" because something is very funny, but seriously, now that I've used it so many times, it's down to as low as a simple "giggle" or "smile" instead where I'm just lightly amused.

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However, even if "Steve" said and heard "I love you" so often, it doesn't necessarily mean that it has lost its meaning as a whole. Given a different situation, it is entirely plausible that those three words still have pure meaning. Imagine if they were in a romantic dinner date, and then "Steve" was walking his girlfriend home. In front of the door (and after making sure that her parents aren't watching from the windows), it was a good night and see you again. "I love you" and a quick kiss to end the night would still be an expression of love.

A simple analogy is the difference between me using "lol" and "LOL!" Both are the same "laughing out loud" but they're used to express different things for me.


Hopefully that makes sense somehow.
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~City-States of Jowston and Tinto Republic~
06.06.2004 - 20.01.2008

[HarmonianHiccup]

I think if differs from person to person. I say it alot to my family because I want them to KNOW that I love them, and I mean it everytime I say it.
I think people don't express it often enough. Sure, "I love you" can sound trite, but if the person saying it really means it, I don't see how it could ever lose its meaning, ever.

But yes, I think it can be over-used and I think people say it without thinking sometimes, but I really do believe that those three words are some of the most important in the English language.
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Proud Owner and Operator of The Hiccup's Speciality Grassland Atelier, the only place to find Electric Whiffle Bats!

[Futch]

And here I thought this was yet ANOTHER public love Declaration towards me, oh well.

Don't sweat it girl, boys are jerks and don't mean it, ever!
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DAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!

[Angelus]

Well I know that whenever I say it to my "significant other", I truthfully mean it. I don't only say at the end of conversations, I say it whenever I feel it, which is always. Well, that would suggest that I always say "I love you", which I don't... but you get what I mean.

But yeah, we always say it at the end of conversations, followed by the "o shiet I don't wanna go D:". But usually when someone doesn't say it, they hear about it("You didn't say 'I love you', I HATE YOU! ..... love you <3"). I guess it's just a good way to end conversations.
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[Ikano]

Aurelien pretty much summed up what I had in mind pretty nicely...

But I was gonna say...Yes...I think the phrase can lose it's meaning if you overuse it. To someone who uses it all the time and says it on alot of circumstances with minimal thought put into it...it seems like just another greeting like "hello" or "see you soon"
and yes, it becomes something like a mechanical habit like turning off the lights when exiting a room.

On the other hand if a kid who's grown up with pretty much minimal obvious signs of affection/uses and hears such words rather sparingly finally gets the words "I love you" said to them it makes for a pretty powerful impact....(or awkwardness depending on who says it and..stuff)

The intention behind the phrase might be there in both cases but the mental impact/feeling it gives varies greatly
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[Overdose]

Yeah its a person to person thing I guess, when my female friends say I love you I know they mean it because I always live upto my friendship, with my family I know they do love me and am proud of me. Love is a meh thing to me when it comes to romance, lots of people say it but its hard to know who means it, sometimes people say it and don't have a clue what real love is.
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"In the rain, I'm calling you dear, find my way, can't you see me standing right here" ~ I.V - X Japan

FOREVER X!!!

[Ninjar]

I generally don't like saying I love you, even to people I know really well. It just means so many things that I kind of see it as speaking a different language without knowing quite what you're saying.

I don't really like being misunderstood and 'I love you' is so ambiguous that I absolutely hate saying it unless I know someone so well that it doesn't bother me...and even then...

[eXistence of Fly]

I usually don't say it unless I really mean it because I'm of the opinion that really it is being used far too much that people are confusing it with other emotions and simply want to fast track things by acting sincere where it's said. Like Ninjar, there's far too many reasons why it can be said to individuals that it's become an ambiguous term from which the reasons differ constantly. Of course, this is only in relation to people where I restrict my personal use, the whole inanimate object thing I have no problem with, because I love food! :D
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[Failure_Urn]

I just nottice younger people saying "I love you" to their boyfriends and girl friends when they are way to young to actually love them. Like they just think its what they should do. But I suppose what else would you say, "I liiiike youuu"?
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[Crono]

I believe it's the way in which the phrase is says determines if it has any meaning or not. For example, I have several girl friends who say it all the time, and the equal response would be something like, yeah yeah you're cool to. If it is said passionately though I think it doesn't lose its effect.
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With gods by our side
We are strong, and not afraid to die
We have an urge to kill
And our lust for blood has to be fulfilled
We'll fight 'till the end, and send our enemies straight to hell!"

[Yvl]

I've avoided saying "I love you" unless I really meant it. People throw the word around, and in that sense it has lost its meaning. Of course, when you truly do love someone, then you can say it as much as you want, as long as it's true. But people just see too many romance movies and think that is the catch phrase of any relationship, even a loveless one.
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[Sailor Sexy]

I think it gets overused way too much. Why the need to constantly say it? I mean, if you've said it once or twice, that should be plenty. Personally, if someone kept saying to me I Love You, then I'd have to wonder what it was they did wrong that has them feeling so guilty. If you really do love them, then you'll be able to express that through the actions you take. If your actions don't say that you love them, then you really don't, so the words are simply trite little remarks made just because that's what you feel you're supposed to say. That's how I feel on the subject anyways.
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~Uguu!~

[Yohn]

I tell my boyfriend "I love you" on the phone a lot, and I mean it every single time, and he tells me a lot, too. Sure, it might be a routine thing, but there is definite sincerity behind the words. When I see him (usually only once or twice a week because of work) and he holds me tight and tells me he loves me, it really is an amazing feeling.

It would be different if it was just something that was being said for the sake of saying it, but that's totally not the case.
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"And as the lion slaughters man, I am the wolf and you're the lamb." ~Blind Guardian

[Axiose]

When my friend was on business in India and he used to call the Isle of Man to ask questions, we all used to say "I love you" to him as he'd be too embaressed to reply with it.

I say I Love You to Jenna every day. It hasn't lost any meaning to me (and hopefully not for her!!) but I figure that I would regret it far more if something would happen to Jenna and I never got a chance to say it enough. I think, as Yohn says, as long as there is sincerity and a person isn't just saying it, it's as meaningful now as it was the first time.

Personally, I think a lot of people say it before they really mean it as it's just something they think they should say.
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[Axiose] [Fliktor]