Romance Definition
rō-măns, rōmăns
romanced, romances, romancing
noun
romances
Ardent emotional attachment or involvement between people; love.
They kept the romance alive in their marriage for 35 years.
American Heritage
A long medieval narrative in verse or prose, orig. written in one of the Romance dialects, about the adventures of knights and other chivalric heroes.
Webster's New World
A strong, sometimes short-lived attachment, fascination, or enthusiasm for something.
A childhood romance with the sea.
American Heritage
A fictitious tale of wonderful and extraordinary events, characterized by a nonrealistic and idealizing use of the imagination.
Webster's New World
Excitement, love, and adventure of the kind found in such literature; romantic quality or spirit.
Webster's New World
Synonyms:
- Gothic novel
- love story
- fiction
- romantic novel
- novel
- lyric tale
- romaunt
- chanson de geste (French)
- Arthurian romance
- metrical romance
- ballad
- adventure story
- picaresque tale
- bodice-ripper
- historical romance
adjective
Designating, of, or constituting any of the languages derived from Vulgar Latin, as Italian, Spanish, French, Portuguese, or Romanian.
Webster's New World
Synonyms:
verb
romanced, romances, romancing
To make up false or exaggerated stories.
Webster's New World
To think or talk about romantic things.
Webster's New World
To make love to; woo.
Webster's New World
To seek to gain the favor of, as by flattery; court.
Webster's New World
To make love; court; woo.
Webster's New World
Origin of Romance
-
From Middle English romauns, roumance, from Anglo-Norman romanz, romant "˜in the vernacular' (vs. in Latin), from Medieval Latin rōmānicÄ“, Vulgar Latin *rōmānicÄ“ (adv.) "˜in the Roman language', from rōmānicus (adj.) "˜Roman', from rōmānus "˜a Roman'.
From Wiktionary
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Middle English from Old French romans romance, work written in French from Vulgar Latin rōmānicē (scrībere) (to write) in the vernacular from Latin Rōmānicus Roman from Rōmānus Roman
From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition
See romance
From Wiktionary
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