What Love Language Do You Speak?

By: Aria de Lima

If I were to ask you what love looks like, what would you tell me? A lot of the times, the way we want people to show us love differs depending on our personal preferences. To try and establish a better understanding of how to show love, author, pastor and counsellor Dr. Gary Chapman developed the 5 love languages. Some of us may be drawn to one, others may have more than one. What is your love language?

Words of Affirmation:

This person feels love through words of approval, encouragement and gratitude. Being able to verbally communicate that you appreciate or value the person makes them feel good. This person may also struggle with criticism.

Physical Touch:

These people enjoy physical touch. Holding hands, hugs, kisses and snuggles are all great ways to show this person love. Physical touch creates a feeling of security, closeness and comfort.

Receiving Gifts:

Receiving thoughtful and meaningful gifts shows this person that you have taken the time to find something that you think they would enjoy. This doesn’t necessarily mean spending lots of money on them, but even picking up some of their favourite flowers or dinner as a surprise will definitely make their day.

Acts of Service:

Someone whose love language is acts of service enjoys when people do things for them. This may be cleaning the house, preparing a meal, offering to pick them up when they need a drive or even just grabbing them a glass of their favourite drink while you’re in the kitchen grabbing something for yourself.

Quality Time:

Making the conscious choice to carve out time to spend with this person shows them that you value time with them. When you spend time with them, avoid distractions such as your phone or other work. Listen to what they are saying, show them your full attention and engage in the conversation or activity by staying focused on them.