valentine

val·en·tine
V4A1L1E1N1T1I1N1E1
/ˈvaləntaɪn//ˈvæləntaɪn/

noun

An expression of affection, especially romantic affection, usually in the form of greeting card, gift, or message given the object of one's affection, especially on February 14th.

“Won't you be my valentine?”

Similar
ValentineValentine'sValentinus
OriginLatin Valentīnus →
CommonScrabble 12
Ask AI about this wordChatGPTClaudePerplexityGoogle AIGrok

Meanings

valentine1

nounvalentine (plural valentines)

plural valentines

  1. An expression of affection, especially romantic affection, usually in the form of greeting card, gift, or message given the object of one's affection, especially on February 14th.

    Such an extravagant valentine was unexpected.

  2. A person to whom a valentine is given or from whom it is received, especially on February 14th.

    Won't you be my valentine?

Valentine2

proper nounValentine (countable and uncountable, plural Valentines)

plural Valentines

  1. countableuncountableSaint Valentine, a 3rd-century Christian martyr.
  2. countableuncountableSynonym of Valentinus, a 2nd-century Egyptian gnostic.

    Synonyms: Valentinus

  3. A unisex given name from Latin.
    1. countableuncountableA male given name from Latin in quiet but steady use since the 16th century.
    2. countableuncountableA female given name from Latin occasionally borrowed from French.
  4. countableuncountableAn English and Scottish surname derived from the male given name.
  5. A placename:
    1. countableuncountableA census-designated place in Mohave County, Arizona.
    2. countableuncountableAn unincorporated community in Johnson Township, LaGrange County, Indiana.
    3. countableuncountableA historic neighbourhood of Kansas City, Missouri.
    4. countableuncountableA city, the county seat of Cherry County, Nebraska.
    5. countableuncountableA neighbourhood of Edison township, Middlesex County, New Jersey.
    6. countableuncountableA small town in Jeff Davis County, Texas, named for its founding date, Valentine's Day.
    7. countableuncountableA commune in Haute-Garonne department, Occitania, France.
    8. countableuncountableA suburb of Newcastle in the City of Lake Macquarie, New South Wales, Australia.
nounValentine (plural Valentines)

plural Valentines

  1. Alternative letter-case form of valentine.

    To morrow is ſaint Valentines day, / All in the morning betime, / And a maide at your window, / To be your Valentine: […]

    c. 1599–1602 (date written), William Shake-speare, The Tragicall Historie of Hamlet, Prince of Denmarke: […] (First Quarto), London: […] [Valentine Simmes] for N[icholas] L[ing] and Iohn Trundell, published 1603, →OCLC, [Act IV, scene v], signature H2, recto
    1 more example

    Valentine’s Day means different things for different people. For Homer, it means forking over a hundred dollars for a dusty box of chocolates at the Kwik-E-Mart after characteristically forgetting the holiday yet again. For Ned, it’s another opportunity to prove his love for his wife. Most germane to the episode, for Lisa, Valentine’s Day means being the only person in her entire class to give Ralph a Valentine after noticing him looking crestfallen and alone at his desk.

    2012 August 5, Nathan Rabin, “The Simpsons (Classic): ‘I Love Lisa’ ”, in The AV Club, archived from the original on 29 Jul 2016

Synonyms & antonyms

proper nounSynonym of Valentinus, a 2nd-century Egyptian gnostic.

Similar
Valentinus
Similar
ValentineValentine'svalentine's
Also see
valentinevalentinus

Origin

valentine · noun

From Saint Valentine's Day (“day of celebration of romantic love”).

Full word history & related roots →

Valentine · proper noun, noun

  1. LatinValentīnus
  2. EnglishValentine

From Latin Valentīnus, a patronymic from Valēns (Roman cognomen), itself nominalized from vālens (“strong, healthy”) + -īnus (“-ine”). Doublet of Valentinus, Valentino, Valentina, and Valentini.

More words from Latin

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Bulgarian валенти́нка, Валенти́н
  • валенти́нка (valentínka)an expression of affection, especially romantic
  • Валенти́н (Valentín)male given name
Catalan Valentí
  • Valentímale given name
Chinese Mandarin 聖瓦倫丁 /圣瓦伦丁, 情人
  • 聖瓦倫丁 /圣瓦伦丁 (shèngwǎlúndīng)an expression of affection, especially romantic
  • 情人 (qíngrén)a person to whom you give, or from whom you receive, a valentine, on February 14th
  • 瓦倫丁 /瓦伦丁 (Wǎlúndīng)male given name
Czech Valentýn
  • Valentýnmale given name
Danish Valentin
  • Valentinmale given name
Dutch Valentijn, Valentinus
  • Valentijnmale given name
  • Valentinusmale given name
Esperanto Valenteno
  • Valentenomale given name
Estonian Valentin
  • Valentinmale given name
Finnish ystävänpäiväkortti, ystävänpäiväkortin saaja
  • ystävänpäiväkorttian expression of affection, especially romantic
  • ystävänpäiväkortin saajaa person to whom you give, or from whom you receive, a valentine, on February 14th
  • Valentinusmale given name
French valentine, Valentine
  • valentinean expression of affection, especially romantic
  • Valentinea person to whom you give, or from whom you receive, a valentine, on February 14th
  • Valentinmale given name
German Valentinsgruß, Liebesgruß
  • Valentinsgrußan expression of affection, especially romantic
  • Liebesgrußan expression of affection, especially romantic
  • Valentinmale given name
Greek Βαλεντίνος
  • Βαλεντίνος (Valentínos)male given name
Hungarian Bálint, Valentin
  • Bálintmale given name
  • Valentinmale given name
Icelandic Valentín
  • Valentínmale given name
Irish cárta Fhéile Vailintín, cárta vailintín
  • cárta Fhéile Vailintínan expression of affection, especially romantic
  • cárta vailintínan expression of affection, especially romantic
  • cárta Lá Fhéile Vailintínan expression of affection, especially romantic
  • vailintína person to whom you give, or from whom you receive, a valentine, on February 14th
  • Vailintínmale given name
Italian valentina, Valentino
  • valentinaan expression of affection, especially romantic
  • Valentinomale given name
Latin Valentinus
  • Valentinusmale given name
Latvian Valentīns
  • Valentīnsmale given name
Polish walentynka, walentynka
  • walentynkaan expression of affection, especially romantic
  • walentynkaa person to whom you give, or from whom you receive, a valentine, on February 14th
  • Walentymale given name
Portuguese Valentim, Valentino
  • Valentimmale given name
  • Valentinomale given name
Romanian Valentin, Валентин
  • Valentinmale given name
  • Валентин (Valentin)male given name
Russian валенти́нка, Валенти́н
  • валенти́нка (valentínka)an expression of affection, especially romantic
  • Валенти́н (Valentín)male given name
Slovak valentínka, Valentín
  • valentínkaa person to whom you give, or from whom you receive, a valentine, on February 14th
  • Valentínmale given name
Spanish Valentín
  • Valentínmale given name
Swedish Valentin
  • Valentinmale given name
Ukrainian Валенти́н
  • Валенти́н (Valentýn)male given name
Vietnamese Valentinô
  • Valentinômale given name
Welsh folant, falantein
  • folantan expression of affection, especially romantic
  • falanteinan expression of affection, especially romantic

Rhymes & wordplay

Anagrams

LevantineValentienLeventina
Cite this entry
APA

valentine. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/valentine

MLA

“valentine.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/valentine. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “valentine,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/valentine.

Source: valentine on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.