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Loving vs Affectionate vs Devoted vs Fond vs Doting

Loving, affectionatedevotedfonddoting are comparable when they mean feeling or showing love or strong liking.

Loving stresses the inward emotion and usually implies sincerity and depth of feeling.

Affectionate often stresses demonstrativeness or implies the need for or fact of outward expression of inward feeling.

Devoted emphasizes attentiveness, sometimes implying little more than assiduousness, sometimes connoting self-dedication or active loyalty to the person or thing one loves or likes.

Fond implies affectionate attachment and often connotes foolish tenderness.

When fond (of) and devoted (to) imply a strong predilection or addiction, they are not often clearly distinguished. However, one is fond of the theater who welcomes every opportunity to see a play; one is devoted to the theater who spends much of his time in seeing plays or in efforts to further the development of the drama. One may be fond of the country and yet not go there often, but if one is devoted to it, one prefers to spend most of one’s time there.

Doting implies excessive fondness that leads to overindulgence in parents or fatuousness in lovers.