The 5 Love Languages is a fantastic book about the different love languages each person has. This book has the kinds of love languages and talks about how you can use the types of love languages to have great relationships with those around you. This article has a list of those love languages and a review of the book by Gary Chapman.
We needed love before we “fell in love,” and we will need it as long as we live.
Are you struggling with your relationship with your spouse or partner? Why does it seem like you fell in love so easily, but the spark has gone dull? What can you do to improve your relationship so that love will flow freely?
The 5 Love Languages, by Gary Chapman, deconstructs how we want to be loved and how we should communicate our love for others.
The 5 Love Languages is a very quick and informative read, and one of my favorite.
Each person has a love language which is the key to feeling happy, trusting and fulfilled in any relationship.
These 5 Love Languages apply to a friendship, a relationship, or a marriage, and everyone can gain something from reading this book by Gary Chapman.
By applying the techniques Chapman suggests in The 5 Love Languages, anyone can improve their relationship with their spouse, boyfriend or girlfriend, or family members.
The rest of this post includes a summary of The 5 Love Languages, takeaways from The 5 Love Languages, and a reading recommendation for you.
Book Summary of The 5 Love Languages
The book, The 5 Love Languages, is all about the ways in which each person receives love.
Everyone has a primary love language, and this is the way in which that person will feel best in their relationship.
As a lover, being sincere is not enough in a relationship.
Instead, we must be willing to learn our spouse’s primary love language if we are to be effective communicators of love.
By learning the love languages and how to work with them, you can cultivate an amazing and loving relationship with our spouse.
What are the Three Truths of Love?
Before providing the types of love languages and a list of the 5 love languages, Gary Chapman discusses the 3 truths of love.
The three truths of love are as follow:
- What we do for each other before marriage is no indication of what we will do after marriage.
- Love is a choice and cannot be coerced.
- My spouse’s criticisms about my behavior provide me with the clearest clue to her primary love language.
Understanding the truths listed above sets the stage for the 5 love languages.
No one is always consistent in their actions; it is impossible, and as a result, we must work each and every day on ourselves and on our relationships.
With these three truths, we can now talk about what the 5 love languages are and how to apply them in our lives and relationships.
What are the 5 Love Languages?
So, what exactly are the 5 love languages?
Below, I have a list of the 5 Love Languages. The 5 Love Languages are:
- Words of Affirmation
- Acts of Service
- Receiving Gifts
- Quality Time
- Physical Touch
Everyone has their own personal primary love language. A picture of a perfect mate should give you some idea of your primary love language.
The first love language is Words of Affirmation. Words of Affirmation are compliments. If you love getting compliments more than anything else, then your primary love language is Words of Affirmation.
The second love language is Acts of Service. Acts of Service is when someone else does things for you. Maybe this involves cleaning the house, making dinner, or giving massages after a long day.
The third love language is Receiving Gifts. Everyone loves to receive gifts, but some people are very materialistic and love receiving gifts.
The fourth love language is Quality Time. Spending uninterrupted time where the two of you can talk, be together, and enjoy each other is the key for quality time.
The fifth love language of the 5 love languages is Physical Touch. Kisses, hugs, holding hands, etc. are all ways that people whose main love language is Physical Touch give and receive love.
With these examples and types of love languages, which one is your main love language? Do you have any secondary love languages as well?
5 Powerful Passages from The 5 Love Languages
In the 5 Love Languages book, there are a number of great passages and quotes.
Below are a few 5 quotes which stuck with me after I read the book.
- Encouragement requires empathy and seeing the world from your spouse’s perspective. We must first learn what is important to our spouse. Only then can we give encouragement.
- Learning to listen may be as difficult as learning a foreign language, but learn we must if we want to communicate love.
- Visual symbols of love are more important to some people than others.
- The most important thing you can do for your mate in a time of crisis is to love him or her. If your spouse’s primary love language is physical touch, nothing is more important than holding her as she cries.
- If she feels loved and admired and appreciated by her husband, then she has a desire to be physically intimate with him. Most sexual problems in marriage have little to do with physical technique but everything to do with meeting emotional needs.
Now, I’m going to share with you my takeaways from reading The 5 Love Languages.
Takeaways from The 5 Love Languages
With every book you read, it is a must to have takeaways and actionable items to implement in life.
After reading this book, I learned about my primary love language, and also was able to reflect on past relationships and see where I was wrong and how I could have improved.
For me, I’m single, but I can still look to incorporate the concepts of The 5 Love Languages in my day to day activities. Before reading The 5 Love Languages I thought my primary love language was Quality Time. Now, I know my main love language is Acts of Service. This makes sense – when my roommate doesn’t clean up the kitchen, no wonder I get upset!! 🙂
Also, I thought back to my previous relationships. Like I said above, I thought my love language was Quality Time. Upon further reflection, it is clear that my favorite hang outs were times when my significant other cooked for me, planned a day for us, or helped me do some chores.
In addition to coming to the realization about my primary love language, I want to try to figure out my friends’ love languages. This will help create an environment where my friends and family around me will be happy due to my actions!
With empty love tanks, couples tend to argue and withdraw, and some may tend to be violent verbally or physically in their arguments. But when the love tank is full, we create a climate of friendliness, a climate that seeks to understand, that is willing to allow differences and to negotiate problems.
Our Recommendation for The 5 Love Languages
The 5 Love Languages is a book every couple who has a serious relationship should read. The 5 Love Languages gives you actionable steps for you to improve your relationship.
While I’m single, I have been thinking how I can apply this in my day to day life.
In particular, I want to figure out my roommates’ love language so I can increase the household happiness 🙂
If you are single, I’d still recommend The 5 Love Languages, and if you are in a couple, then it’s a definite must-read.
You will be able to understand why your parents treated and brought you up the way they did. All in all, The 5 Love Languages is a informative, quick read packed with great insights into how to have healthy relationships.
Love doesn’t erase the past, but it makes the future different.
Readers: Do you know your love language? Do you know your spouse’s love language? Are you actively looking to improve your relationships through reading?