# What is the opposite of love? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [August 19, 2011, 4:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-opposite-of-love/593282 "2011-08-19T04:33:51Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Spice\_Weasel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spice_weasel/32/5435_2.png) [@Spice\_Weasel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spice_Weasel)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2011, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-opposite-of-love/593282/21 "2011-08-19T16:38:59Z")
I came in to say apathy. Looks like I’m not alone. ---
**Author:** ![antonio107](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/7ea924/32.png) [@antonio107](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/antonio107)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2011, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-opposite-of-love/593282/22 "2011-08-19T16:41:46Z")
Celibacy. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2011, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-opposite-of-love/593282/23 "2011-08-19T16:52:40Z")
Marraige? ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2011, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-opposite-of-love/593282/24 "2011-08-19T17:08:58Z")
My initial thought was “apathy,” but that doesn’t work for me. For me, the simple answer, “hate,” is the one. It depends on how you define opposite. For me the opposite of “great positive feelings” towards a person is “great negative feelings towards a person,” which is “hate.” For me the opposite of “apathy” is “interest.” That’s my answer, and I’m sticking to it. ---
**Author:** ![Grapefruit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/73ab20/32.png) [@Grapefruit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grapefruit)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2011, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-opposite-of-love/593282/25 "2011-08-19T17:12:09Z")
Another vote for indifference too. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2011, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-opposite-of-love/593282/26 "2011-08-19T17:19:42Z")
> [@Hippy\_Hollow](#): > > Hate is very similar to love in the respect that you can fall deeply into it; it can be an obsession, and ultimately, it means that you are very concerned, perhaps obsessively so, about someone’s well being. Having similar qualities doesn’t preclude something from being an opposite. “What’s the opposite of hot?” “Cold.” “No, cold is very similar to hot: They’re both temperatures; both of them can kill you if they get too extreme; they’re both found as labels on sink faucets…” Or, to take a mathematical example, the opposite of 1 is -1, not 0 or i. So, I vote for hate as the opposite of love. ---
**Author:** ![Bosstone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/22d042/32.png) [@Bosstone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosstone)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2011, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-opposite-of-love/593282/27 "2011-08-19T17:26:59Z")
It really does depend on what continuum you’re talking about. If it’s positive-negative feeling, then love and hate are opposites. If it’s intensity of feeling, then love and hate are similar and indifference is the opposite of both. ---
**Author:** ![fifty-six](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@fifty-six](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fifty-six)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2011, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-opposite-of-love/593282/28 "2011-08-19T17:27:48Z")
I am going with spite. If there was a coin spite would be on the other side. Both are some of the most motivating and long lasting emotions. Deep, piercing and require us to tap into our insecurities and vunverabilities to be effective. For something to be oppisite it must have many similarities. Not just mostly different. Indiference i os juat in the middle, hardly opposite. ---
**Author:** ![thatguyjeff](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/6de8d8/32.png) [@thatguyjeff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thatguyjeff)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2011, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-opposite-of-love/593282/29 "2011-08-19T18:02:25Z")
I say fear. Hate is rooted in fear, as are most negative emotions. I think fear fits as a better true opposite than indifference. Indifference is a total lack of love, but not its opposite. ---
**Author:** ![Telperion](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telperion/32/509_2.png) [@Telperion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telperion)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2011, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-opposite-of-love/593282/30 "2011-08-19T18:12:33Z")
Science. ---
**Author:** ![Keweenaw](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/da6949/32.png) [@Keweenaw](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Keweenaw)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2011, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-opposite-of-love/593282/31 "2011-08-19T18:27:05Z")
> [@Telperion](#): > > Science. Atheism ---
**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2011, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-opposite-of-love/593282/32 "2011-08-19T22:26:52Z")
> [@Bosstone](#): > > It really does depend on what continuum you’re talking about. > > If it’s positive-negative feeling, then love and hate are opposites. > > If it’s intensity of feeling, then love and hate are similar and indifference is the opposite of both. There’s also the question of focus. Love is focused on one or a few people, so its opposite in that sense should be aimed indiscriminately. Malice; greed; some kind of indiscriminate desire to harm or exploit others regardless of who they are. ---
**Author:** ![MeanOldLady](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/meanoldlady/32/10737_2.png) [@MeanOldLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MeanOldLady)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2011, 10:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-opposite-of-love/593282/33 "2011-08-19T22:45:18Z")
> [@YamatoTwinkie](#): > > Can’t you conclude that the opposite of “hate” is “indifference” as well? Yes. **YaraMateo** , have you ever had someone you’ve loved entirely shatter your heart into so many pieces that neither the king’s horses nor his men could do anything to put it back together? Remember when you stopped feeling sad and just felt angry? Have you ever encountered the person in public after the split, or had the name mentioned in a conversation, and felt a flash of anger course through your body? Do you remember regarding that person with hostility, and if ever a tale of that person’s ill-fortune passed by you, you couldn’t help but to have the corners of your mouth turn involuntarily upward? Then do you remember the day, a long while later, when you ceased to think about that person at all? And if the topic ever came up, you regarded it the same way you would a friend telling you about some sale she took advantage of? “Oh, that’s nice,” you would think, and that would be it. That’s the opposite of love, when you just do not feel a single thing for that person anymore. If you feel even the slightest pang of animosity, you still care. ---
**Author:** ![YaraMateo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/58f4c7/32.png) [@YaraMateo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YaraMateo)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2011, 1:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-opposite-of-love/593282/34 "2011-08-20T01:46:24Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > My initial thought was “apathy,” but that doesn’t work for me. For me, the simple answer, “hate,” is the one. It depends on how you define opposite. For me the opposite of “great positive feelings” towards a person is “great negative feelings towards a person,” which is “hate.” For me the opposite of “apathy” is “interest.” > > That’s my answer, and I’m sticking to it. What he said. ---
**Author:** ![YaraMateo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/58f4c7/32.png) [@YaraMateo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YaraMateo)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2011, 1:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-opposite-of-love/593282/35 "2011-08-20T01:49:12Z")
> [@MeanOldLady](#): > > Yes. > > **YaraMateo** , have you ever had someone you’ve loved entirely shatter your heart into so many pieces that neither the king’s horses nor his men could do anything to put it back together? Remember when you stopped feeling sad and just felt angry? Have you ever encountered the person in public after the split, or had the name mentioned in a conversation, and felt a flash of anger course through your body? Do you remember regarding that person with hostility, and if ever a tale of that person’s ill-fortune passed by you, you couldn’t help but to have the corners of your mouth turn involuntarily upward? Then do you remember the day, a long while later, when you ceased to think about that person at all? And if the topic ever came up, you regarded it the same way you would a friend telling you about some sale she took advantage of? “Oh, that’s nice,” you would think, and that would be it. That’s the opposite of love, when you just do not feel a single thing for that person anymore. If you feel even the slightest pang of animosity, you still care. Good post. To answer you, yes. I’m a strange person. I don’t feel much indifference. I tend to either like or dislike things. Usually, loving or hating things. So, while I can see why it’s indifference. I see it as hate. Both answers are valid now that I think about it. ---
**Author:** ![Elret](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b9bd4f/32.png) [@Elret](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elret)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2011, 2:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-opposite-of-love/593282/36 "2011-08-20T02:13:58Z")
The opposite of _caring_ is _indifference_. _Love_ is caring about something in a positive way, and the opposite of that is caring about something in a negative way, which is _hate_. ---
**Author:** ![Two\_Many\_Cats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8dc957/32.png) [@Two\_Many\_Cats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Two_Many_Cats)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2011, 2:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-opposite-of-love/593282/37 "2011-08-20T02:17:01Z")
> [@indian](#): > > I am curious. So, is the opposite of curious bored? ---
**Author:** ![Indian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c0e974/32.png) [@Indian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Indian)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2011, 3:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-opposite-of-love/593282/38 "2011-08-20T03:07:19Z")
> [@Two\_Many\_Cats](#): > > So, is the opposite of curious bored? :)😃 I am enjoying the responses and the thought processes behind them. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2011, 3:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-opposite-of-love/593282/39 "2011-08-20T03:07:39Z")
EVOL Which is _EVIL_ spelled badly. ---
**Author:** ![Fuzzy\_Dunlop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/848f3c/32.png) [@Fuzzy\_Dunlop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fuzzy_Dunlop)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2011, 3:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-opposite-of-love/593282/40 "2011-08-20T03:15:59Z")
> [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > Having similar qualities doesn’t preclude something from being an opposite. > > “What’s the opposite of hot?” > > “Cold.” > > “No, cold is very similar to hot: They’re both temperatures; both of them can kill you if they get too extreme; they’re both found as labels on sink faucets…” > > Or, to take a mathematical example, the opposite of 1 is -1, not 0 or i. > > So, I vote for hate as the opposite of love. Yes, I agree with **Thudlow Boink** completely. This ‘indifference’ argument seems downright silly to me. Is the ‘big’'s opposite ‘average’? Is the opposite of ‘winning’ a tie? Is the opposite of ‘profit’ to break even? Is the opposite of ‘extreme success’ ‘abject mediocrity’? I’m pretty sure the actual answers are ‘small’, ‘losing’, ‘loss’, and ‘miserable failure’. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-opposite-of-love/593282.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-opposite-of-love/593282.md?page=3)