Love is in the air, it's Valentine's week! But this in an English language blog, so we won't be talking about any sappy stuff, instead, today we're going to take a look at how to use the verb "love" correctly. Yeah sorry, I'm able to take the fun out of everything and turn it into grammar, but you'll thank me for it when you start speaking like a native English speaker 😅.
Using the verb love correctly
First of all, love is what we call a stative verb. If you want a full lesson on these verbs, check out this post, but to sum it up for you quickly, in English there are two main verb types: action verbs and stative verbs. Stative verbs are essentially verbs that are not physical actions, rather, they are the "actions" that happen inside your head. These verbs are generally used only in the simple tense, not in the continuous tense, because they are not actions. So here are the ways you can use love as a verb correctly + one extra way that isn't "perfect Cambridge English" but it's perfect spoken English.
1. Subject + love + action (-ing)
Present simple: I love snowboarding. He loves reading. We all love speaking English!
Past simple: They loved living in Spain.
Used to: I used to love going to the beach, but now I prefer the mountains.
Future simple: I'm sure you will love travelling in the USA!
2. Subject + love + action (infinitive)
Present simple: I love to snowboard. He loves to read. We all love to speak English!
Past simple: nope, sorry, it doesn't work here🤷♀️
Used to: I used to love to go to the beach, but now I prefer the mountains.
Future simple: It works, but it needs a change - I would love to travel to the USA!
3. Subject + love + noun
Present simple: I love winter. He loves books. We all love English!
Past simple: I loved the hot,dry summers in Madrid.
Used to: I used to love the beach, but now I prefer the mountains.
Future simple: You will absolutely love her new boyfriend!
4. BONUS: this isn't correct by Cambridge standards, but it's perfectly fine for everyday conversation, and I use it all the time, so go, be free and speak real English. The verb "love" can be used in the present continuous to describe your NEW happy feelings about something. This is informal but completely correct.
I'm really loving my new haircut.
She's loving her new job.
We're loving our new house.
So? Are you totally loving your newfound knowledge on how to use the verb love? I hope so. Breaking the rules is always fun right? So go, break the Cambridge English Grammar rules and use love in the present continuous and enjoy sounding like a native speaker😉.
Glossary
sappy: informal - ridiculously over sentimental
newfound: something recently discovered
