Love is complicated. It can lift you up to the highest highs and drop you to the lowest lows. Oftentimes, it doesn’t make much sense at all. Here are some love quotes that capture the confusion, complexity, and contradictions of love:
Table of Contents
Confusing Love Quotes
“There is always some madness in love. But there is also always some reason in madness.”
– Friedrich Nietz
This quote speaks to how love can drive us to do things that may seem crazy or irrational from the outside, but somehow make perfect sense when you’re in it. Love has its own internal logic that can seem like madness to others.
“Love sought is good, but given unsought is better.”
– William Shakespeare
Is it better to play hard to get or wear your heart on your sleeve? This quote suggests playing coy is not the way to true love. But is honesty always the best policy in romance?
“We are all a little weird and life’s a little weird, and when we find someone whose weirdness is compatible with ours, we join up with them and fall in mutual weirdness and call it love.”
– Dr. Seuss
Few capture the weirdness of love as well as Dr. Seuss. But is “weirdness” really the foundation for true love?
Puzzling Love Quotes
“There is always some madness in love. But there is also always some reason in madness.”
– Friedrich Nietzsche
“Love sought is good, but given unsought is better.”
– William Shakespeare
“We accept the love we think we deserve.”
– Stephen Chbosky
“Love never dies a natural death. It dies because we don’t know how to replenish its source.”
– Anais Nin
“To love at all is to be vulnerable.”
– C.S. Lewis
“Love is a friendship set to music.”
– Joseph Campbell
“Love does not begin and end the way we seem to think it does.”
“Love is the extremely difficult realization that something other than oneself is real.”
– Iris Murdoch
“Love is not a feeling of happiness. Love is a willingness to sacrifice.”
– Michael Novak
“The art of love is largely the art of persistence.”
– Albert Ellis
Confusing Sayings About Love
“Love is a smoke made with the fume of sighs.”
– William Shakespeare
“Love is the delusion that one woman differs from another.”
– H.L. Mencken
“There is no remedy for love but to love more.”
– H.L. Mencken
“Love never reasons, but profusely gives.”
– John Gay
“True love stories never end.”
– Richard Bach
“In dreams and in love there are no impossibilities.”
– Janos Arnay
“Love undisguised is madness.”
– Jessica Mitford
“Love unlocks doors and opens windows that weren’t even there before.”
– Mignon McLaughlin
“Love is grand; divorce, a hundred grand.”
– R.P. Lister
Love Quotes That Don’t Make Sense
“Love is a canvas furnished by nature and embroidered by imagination.”
– Voltaire
“Love is the poetry of the senses.”
– Honore de Balzac
“Love is the child of illusion and the parent of disillusion.”
– Miguel de Unamuno
“Love is the self-delusion we manufacture to justify the trouble we take to have sex.”
– Dan Greenburg
“Love is an exploding cigar we willingly smoke.”
– Lynda Barry
“Love is the answer, but while you’re waiting for the answer, sex raises some pretty interesting questions.”
– Woody Allen
“Love is a gross exaggeration of the difference between one person and everybody else.”
– George Bernard Shaw
“Love is an ocean of emotions entirely surrounded by expenses.”
– Lord Dewar
“Love is the triumph of imagination over intelligence.”
– H.L. Mencken
“Love is the delusion that one woman differs from another.”
– H.L. Mencken
Weird Love Quotes to Think About
“Love is like quicksilver in the hand. Leave the fingers open and it stays. Clutch it, and it darts away.”
– Dorothy Parker
“Love is a fire. But whether it is going to warm your hearth or burn down your house, you can never tell.”
– Joan Crawford
“Love is a canvas furnished by nature and embroidered by imagination.”
– Voltaire
“Love is a smoke made with the fume of sighs.”
– William Shakespeare
“There is no remedy for love but to love more.”
– Henry David Thoreau
“Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength, while loving someone deeply gives you courage.”
– Lao Tzu
“Love never dies a natural death. It dies because we don’t know how to replenish its source.”
– Anais Nin
“True love stories never have endings.”
– Richard Bach
“Love built on beauty, soon as beauty, dies.”
– John Donne
“Love is composed of a single soul inhabiting two bodies.”
– Aristotle
Odd Love Quotes That Make You Wonder
“Love is a smoke made with the fume of sighs.”
– William Shakespeare
“Love is a canvas furnished by nature and embroidered by imagination.”
– Voltaire
“Love is an exploding cigar we willingly smoke.”
– Lynda Barry
“Love is the triump of imagination over intelligence.”
– H.L. Mencken
“Love is the extremely difficult realization that something other than oneself is real.”
– Iris Murdoch
“Love is never lost. If not reciprocated, it will flow back and soften and purify the heart.”
– Washington Irving
“Love is the magician that pulls man out of his own hat.”
– Ben Hecht
“Love is like war: easy to begin but very hard to stop.”
– H.L. Mencken
“To love is to receive a glimpse of heaven.”
– Karen Sunde
“We are shaped and fashioned by what we love.”
– Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Strange Love Quotes That Are Hard to Understand
“Love is composed of a single soul inhabiting two bodies.”
– Aristotle
“Love is an exploding cigar we willingly smoke.”
– Lynda Barry
“Love is an ocean of emotions entirely surrounded by expenses.”
– Lord Dewar
“Love built on beauty, soon as beauty, dies.”
– John Donne
“Love never reasons, but profusely gives.”
– John Gay
“Love is an attempt to change a piece of a dream world into reality.”
– Theodor Reik
“True love stories never have endings.”
– Richard Bach
“Love unlocks doors and opens windows that weren’t even there before.”
– Mignon McLaughlin
Love Quotes That Leave You Confused
“Love is a fire. But whether it is going to warm your hearth or burn down your house, you can never tell.”
– Joan Crawford
“Love is a smoke made with the fume of sighs.”
– William Shakespeare
“Love is composed of a single soul inhabiting two bodies.”
– Aristotle
“Love is a canvas furnished by nature and embroidered by imagination.”
– Voltaire
“Love is a gross exaggeration of the difference between one person and everybody else.”
– George Bernard Shaw
“Love is the extremely difficult realization that something other than oneself is real.”
– Iris Murdoch
“Love never dies a natural death. It dies because we don’t know how to replenish its source.”
– Anais Nin
“Love is the magician that pulls man out of his own hat.”
– Ben Hecht
“Love is the triumph of imagination over intelligence.”
– H.L. Mencken
“Love is the child of illusion and the parent of disillusion.”
– Miguel de Unamuno
Perplexing Quotes About Love
“Love is like quicksilver in the hand. Leave the fingers open and it stays. Clutch it, and it darts away.”
– Dorothy Parker
“Love is composed of a single soul inhabiting two bodies.”
– Aristotle
“Love is a fire. But whether it is going to warm your hearth or burn down your house, you can never tell.”
– Joan Crawford
“Love is a gross exaggeration of the difference between one person and everybody else.”
– George Bernard Shaw
“Love is a smoke made with the fume of sighs.”
– William Shakespeare
“Love never reasons, but profusely gives.”
– John Gay
“Love is the extremely difficult realization that something other than oneself is real.”
– Iris Murdoch
“Love is the child of illusion and the parent of disillusion.”
– Miguel de Unamuno
“Love built on beauty, soon as beauty, dies.”
– John Donne
“Love is the magician that pulls man out of his own hat.”
– Ben Hecht
Sayings About Love That Are Hard to Figure Out
“Love is composed of a single soul inhabiting two bodies.”
– Aristotle
“Love is a fire. But whether it is going to warm your hearth or burn down your house, you can never tell.”
– Joan Crawford
“Love is a canvas furnished by nature and embroidered by imagination.”
– Voltaire
“Love is a smoke made with the fume of sighs.”
– William Shakespeare
“Love is the extremely difficult realization that something other than oneself is real.”
– Iris Murdoch
“Love never reasons, but profusely gives.”
– John Gay
“Love is the child of illusion and the parent of disillusion.”
– Miguel de Unamuno
“Love built on beauty, soon as beauty, dies.”
– John Donne
“Love is the magician that pulls man out of his own hat.”
– Ben Hecht
“Love is the triumph of imagination over intelligence.”
– H.L. Mencken
Quotes That Capture the Confusion of Love
“There is always some madness in love. But there is also always some reason in madness.”
– Friedrich Nietzsche
“Love sought is good, but given unsought is better.”
– William Shakespeare
“We accept the love we think we deserve.”
– Stephen Chbosky
“Love is the extremely difficult realization that something other than oneself is real.”
– Iris Murdoch
“Love never dies a natural death. It dies because we don’t know how to replenish its source.”
– Anais Nin
“Love is a fire. But whether it is going to warm your hearth or burn down your house, you can never tell.”
– Joan Crawford
“Love is a smoke made with the fume of sighs.”
– William Shakespeare
“Love is a gross exaggeration of the difference between one person and everybody else.”
– George Bernard Shaw
“Love is the child of illusion and the parent of disillusion.”
– Miguel de Unamuno
“Love built on beauty, soon as beauty, dies.”
– John Donne
These quotes capture some of the paradoxes of love – it’s irrational but reasonable, sought but unsought, weirdly compatible yet incompatible. Love is complicated, so it’s no wonder these quotes leave us puzzled about its true nature.
Emily Parker founded Quoteskit.com in 2023 as a place to share her love of inspirational quotes about love, life and happiness. As an avid reader, Emily has always turned to books, poems and famous sayings to boost her mood or gain new perspectives. She started Quoteskit as a passion project with the goal of spreading more joy, wisdom and positivity in the world.
Emily Parker
Emily Parker
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