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Men show love differently than women do.
By Ossiana Tepfenhart — Last updated on Apr 16, 2023
When it comes to love languages, one thing I’ve noticed is that men and women show affection differently.
Women tend to be very verbal when it comes to love, while men tend to be “doers” rather than “talkers.”
The problem that a lot of girls have is that they often don’t realize a guy is showing them affection until it’s too late. After all, a lot of actions are way more subtle than people realize.
If you want to really treasure a relationship and understand the way guys work, then you need to make sure that you notice how men show that they love you.
Are you picking up on the subtle ways guys show love, or have you been ignoring the signs all along?
Here are 15 ways he shows you he loves you, that you might not have picked up on:
1. He makes a point to keep you happy
Does he always do small things like keeping your shoes near the door, cooking Sunday dinner for you, and more? These small gestures take effort, and every little time he does them, it’s him saying he cares.
2. He provides for you
Assuming he’s not abusive or manipulative, men don’t provide for women they don’t care about. If he regularly buys you things without strings being attached to them, or if he always makes a point of bringing home the bacon, that’s done as a sign of love. Men tend to want to be providers to people they care about.
3. He talks to you, a lot, about everything
When a man loves a woman, she becomes his confidante for just about everything. He’ll tell her about incidents at work, talk to her about how annoying the next-door neighbor is, and even gush about his favorite shows to her. If he’s talking a bunch, it's definitely how men show that they love you.
4. He chooses to commit to you, be loyal to you, and stay with you
Guys who are really in love have no issue committing and will have no issue staying loyal. If you have to beg and plead for either, he doesn’t love you.
5. He still wants to have sex with you, even though years have passed
Men who have fallen out of love often lose any and all attraction to the woman they lost their love for. If he no longer asks for sex, chances are that he stopped loving you a while back. If he’s still asking after years of being together, there’s a good chance that he still loves you.
6. If things are rocky and he knows it, he tries to work it out
Men who are in love with someone will work out problems with their partner before their partner is about to walk out the door. Guys who truly love their partners don’t wait until the pot’s boiling over to do something. They broach the subject as soon as they believe you might not be totally happy because they want to see you smile.
7. If you tell him things are rocky, he believes you and actually tries his hardest to fix it
A man who really loves a woman will do almost anything to keep her. If you say you have a problem with something, a man who loves you will try to work things out with you, even if he doesn’t fully understand why it upsets you. (Of course, this is always within reason.)
8. He stays with you, even when things aren’t too rosy
It takes a lot of love for a guy not to leave when things aren’t good. If he sticks by you when you’re sick, when you’re depressed, or when you’re broke, he’s showing he loves you.
9. He compromises and doesn’t hold compromising against you
Compromise, whether we acknowledge it or not, is an act of love. It takes a bit to actually admit that you’ll put someone else’s needs before your own or even meet them halfway.
10. He listens to you
Every guy hears what a woman says, but few actually listen. Does he hear you and actually reply to what you’re saying? Does he hear you, understand you, and work with you? Does he actually remember what you say? If so, he’s listening and he’s loving you.
11. You can tell that he feels comfortable around you
Guys generally only feel comfortable around people they really love and trust.
12. He doesn’t actively try to gross you out and tries to keep himself attractive for you
I believe that men are aware that gross things will turn off even the most mellow woman. If he stops trying to keep any mystery in the relationship, then it might be a sign that he’s stopped caring about what you think — and about you.
13. He always keeps you in his plans
This is yet another important way to tell how men show that they love you. When a man loves a woman, he plans to be with her for the long run. If he stops keeping you in the picture, it’s a sign he fell out of love.
14. You know that he will not tolerate anyone who speaks ill of you
I learned this the hard way. A man who actually loves you will never allow anyone to speak badly of you, not even his mother. The reason why are that guys always have the urge to defend what they care about. If they don’t want to defend you, they probably don’t care enough to love you.
15. He puts up with the bullsh*t
We all have a tendency to cause bullsh*t. Whether it’s financial woes due to shoe shopping or a little bit of whining cause you missed Steven Universe, it’s hard to deny that we all have flaws. If he puts up with the negative sides you have without making a huge deal of it, that’s his way of saying he loves you without saying he loves you.
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Ossiana Tepfenhart is a writer based out of Red Bank, New Jersey whose work has been featured in Yahoo, BRIDES, Your Daily Dish, Newtheory Magazine, and others