romance
Word family
- romanticadjectiveB1
- romanticallyadverbB2
- romanticizeverbC1
- romanticismnounC1
- romancernounC2
- neo-romanticadjectiveC2
Synonym discussion
Sense: noun/1
All five words describe connections between people, but they differ in tone and scope. 'Romance' emphasises excitement and passion, often in a relationship that burns brightly for a short time — 'Their office romance ended when she moved abroad' suggests a brief, intense period. 'Love affair' is more neutral and can describe any romantic involvement, long or short, without the same connotation of fleeting excitement. 'Liaison' carries a formal, often disapproving tone and typically implies secrecy — 'Their liaison was discovered by the press.' 'Relationship' is the broadest and most neutral term; it covers friendships, family ties, and professional connections as well as romantic partnerships. 'Affair', when used for a romantic relationship, almost always suggests that at least one person is married to someone else, giving it a sense of secrecy and social disapproval — 'Their affair lasted years behind closed doors.' Use 'romance' when you want to convey the passionate, idealistic quality of the connection; use 'relationship' for a factual, neutral description.
Common collocations
Etymology
The noun and verb senses of 'romance' trace back through Old French 'romans' or 'romanz', which originally meant 'a story written in the everyday language of the people (the vernacular), not in scholarly Latin'. Since these vernacular stories were often about knights, love, and heroic adventures, the word came to mean a tale of love and adventure. The adjective 'Romance' (capital R) comes directly from the Latin 'Romanicus', meaning 'of Rome' or 'Roman-style', and refers to the languages that grew out of the Latin spoken by ordinary Romans. The two strands — one about storytelling and love, the other about Latin-derived languages — share a common root in the Latin word 'Romanus' (Roman), but diverged in meaning many centuries ago.