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romance |
6 definitions found From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]: Romance \Ro*mance"\, n. [OE. romance, romant, romaunt, OF romanz, romans, romant, roman, F. roman, romance, fr LL Romanice in the Roman language, in the vulgar tongue, i. e., in the vulgar language which sprang from Latin, the language of the Romans, and hence applied to fictitious compositions written in this vulgar tongue; fr L. Romanicus Roman, fr Romanus See {Roman}, and cf {Romanic}, {Romaunt}, {Romansch}, {Romanza}.] 1. A species of fictitious writing, originally composed in meter in the Romance dialects, and afterward in prose, such as the tales of the court of Arthur, and of Amadis of Gaul; hence any fictitious and wonderful tale; a sort of novel, especially one which treats of surprising adventures usually befalling a hero or a heroine; a tale of extravagant adventures, of love, and the like ``Romances that been royal.'' --Chaucer. Upon these three columns -- chivalry, gallantry, and religion -- repose the fictions of the Middle Ages, especially those known as romances. These such as we now know them and such as display the characteristics above mentioned, were originally metrical, and chiefly written by nations of the north of France. --Hallam. 2. An adventure, or series of extraordinary events, resembling those narrated in romances; as his courtship, or his life, was a romance. 3. A dreamy, imaginative habit of mind; a disposition to ignore what is real; as a girl full of romance. 4. The languages, or rather the several dialects, which were originally forms of popular or vulgar Latin, and have now developed into Italian. Spanish, French, etc (called the Romanic languages). 5. (Mus.) A short lyric tale set to music; a song or short instrumental piece in ballad style; a romanza. From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]: Romance \Ro*mance"\, a. Of or pertaining to the language or dialects known as Romance. From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]: Romance \Ro*mance"\, v. i. [imp. & p. p. {Romanced}; p. pr & vb n. {Romancing}.] To write or tell romances; to indulge in extravagant stories. A very brave officer, but apt to romance. --Walpole. From WordNet r 1.6 [wn]: Romance adj : relating to languages derived from Latin; "Romance languages" [syn: {Romance}, {Latin}] n 1: a relationship between two lovers [syn: {love affair}] 2: an exciting and mysterious quality (as of a heroic time or adventure) [syn: {romanticism}] 3: the group of languages derived from Latin [syn: {Romance}, {Romance language}, {Latinian language}] 4: a story dealing with love [syn: {love story}] 5: a novel dealing with idealized events remote from everyday life v 1: make amorous advances towards; "john is courting Mary" [syn: {woo}, {court}, {solicit}] 2: have a love affair with 3: talk amorously; "The guys always try to chat up the new secretaries"; "My husband never flirts with other women" [syn: {chat up}, {flirt}, {dally}, {coquet}, {coquette}, {philander}, {mash}] 4: tell romantic or exaggerated lies; "This author romanced his trip to an exotic country" From U.S. Gazetteer (1990) [gazetteer]: Romance, AR Zip code(s): 72136 Romance, WV Zip code(s): 25248 From THE DEVIL'S DICTIONARY ((C)1911 Released April 15 1993) [devils]: ROMANCE, n. Fiction that owes no allegiance to the God of Things as They Are In the novel the writer's thought is tethered to probability, as a domestic horse to the hitching-post, but in romance it ranges at will over the entire region of the imagination -- free lawless, immune to bit and rein. Your novelist is a poor creature, as Carlyle might say -- a mere reporter. He may invent his characters and plot, but he must not imagine anything taking place that might not occur, albeit his entire narrative is candidly a lie. Why he imposes this hard condition on himself, and "drags at each remove a lengthening chain" of his own forging he can explain in ten thick volumes without illuminating by so much as a candle's ray the black profound of his own ignorance of the matter. There are great novels, for great writers have "laid waste their powers" to write them but it remains true that far and away the most fascinating fiction that we have is "The Thousand and One Nights."
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