Falling in Love Is a Feeling That's Hard to Describe—These 25 Quotes Come Pretty Close (2024)

We love love. We love falling in love. We love being in love. We love the queasy, butterflies-in-the-stomach feeling that love can bring. We even love romantic notions about love.

More than half of all Americans say they believe in love at first sight. But whether it’s an instantaneous feeling or one that happens over time, it can be hard to describe yet easy to experience.

“Falling in love can in many ways feel like finally coming home. It’s the combination of an intoxicating hormonal co*cktail and the absolute joy and elation of feeling seen and seeing someone else,” explains Leigh Norén, sex and relationship therapist at Leigh Norén Coaching & Therapy. “While some experience it more intensely than others, one of the most beautiful things about falling in love is how fundamentally hard it is to put into words what you’re feeling. You just know you feel it when you feel it.”

Falling in love can take on different contexts, depending on the situation you’re in. Verbalizing your feelings can give additional meaning during times of celebration, like weddings or graduations, or when significant emotional life events happen, such as a rite of passage event or another life milestone.

Many people have tried to put that indescribable feeling into words. We take a look at quotes people share that describe the joy, beauty, mystery, and intrigue of love … and falling in love.

25 Quotes on Falling in Love

1.“All love stories are tales of beginnings. When we talk about falling in love, we go to the beginning, to pinpoint the moment of freefall.

-Meghan O'Rourke

4.“Falling in love consists merely in uncorking the imagination and bottling the common
sense.”

—Helen Rowland

5.“First best is falling in love. Second best is being in love. Least best is falling out of love. But any of it is better than never having been in love.”

-Maya Angelou

9. “I think falling in love is always a surprise, right?”

—Josh Dallas

10. “If it is your time, love will track you down like a cruise missile.

-Lynda Barry

12. “It's easy to fall in love. The hard part is finding someone to catch you.”

―Bertrand Russell

13. “Love is but the discovery of ourselves in others, and the delight in the recognition.”

―Alexander Smith

14. “Love is friendship that has caught fire.”

―Ann Landers

15. “No one ever fell in love gracefully."

— Connie Brockway

16. “The bottom line is that we never fall for the person we’re supposed to.”

— Jodi Picoult

17. “The greatest thing you’ll ever learn is just to love and be loved in return.”

―Nat King Cole, “Nature Boy”

19.“A successful marriage requires falling in love many times, always with the same person.”

— Mignon McLaughlin

21. “We never get enough of falling in love and believing in love.”

— Shemar Moore

22. “When we’re falling in love or out of it, that’s when we most need a song that says how we feel. Yeah, I write a lot of songs about boys. And I’m very happy to do that.

— Taylor Swift

23. “You can’t blame gravity for falling in love.”

―Albert Einstein

The Impact of Falling in Love

Falling in love does more than cause a smile to creep across your face when that special someone comes to mind. Yes, there’s the butterflies-in-the-stomach, giddy feeling of excitement. There’s also something physical happening to you inside.

“[There are] shifts in ‘feel good’ hormones in the brain. Neurons [are] firing together and wiring together with the deep association … [of] another individual,” explains Jenny Flora Wells, MSW, LSW, ACSW, a holistic therapist.

“Mentally, we might feel as if we can’t think of anything else but our loved one. We will have constant thoughts and wonder if there is something wrong. … People around you may find you hard to be around because of the cloud of illusion that hits at the first stage of love — the honeymoon stage,” says Audrey Hope, a relationship expert. “Emotionally, you may be in a kind of movie, storybook illusion where everything feels different, rosy, and happy as if you want to sing — like they do in musicals and in the old movies. It will be a kind of drug — that has only happy positive effects and [makes] you want to stay on ‘cloud nine’,” she adds.

How to Use These Quotes to Anchor Your Love

It's a feeling you revel in and want to continually last. Of course, life intervenes and the falling in love feeling changes. It can grow and develop into something richer and more meaningful. But there are still ways you can make that loving feeling last.

• Give your love interest something special on a regular basis. A flower, handwritten note, or other small and thoughtful gesture can keep the euphoric feelings alive.
• Find your favorite quote about love and place it in a frame, perhaps alongside a photo of your loved one. You can put it on the wall, fridge, or on your desk as a constant reminder.
• Make several quotes along with photos of loving memories with your beloved into a screensaver on your phone or your laptop. Catching a glimpse of one of the quotes or photos can be a grounding reminder of what is important to you.

“It’s so easy to get caught up in our daily lives, consumed with work stress, our kids, or just staying afloat. Reading quotes is a great way to inject a little positive energy and remind us of the value of loving our partner,” Norén concludes. “Fundamentally, quotes about falling in love set our priorities straight and remind us of the power of love, and how intoxicating it can be.”