What it means
Said when someone's all wrapped up in the honeymoon goo and making it everybody else's viewing experience too. They're clingy, grinning, doing little public kisses, acting like the bus stop's their personal rom-com set. Usually a bit cheeky when you say it. You're not hating, you're just begging them to tone the lovey fog down a notch.
Usage examples
"Saw Dan and Chloe outside Tesco Express, loved up, sharing one umbrella and chips like it’s a rom-com. Walked straight into a bollard staring."
"My brother and his new partner are loved up beyond reason, sent me a picture from their kitchen at seven this morning of them sharing one slice of toast and one cup of coffee, captioned breakfast goals and four heart emojis."
"Saw the lads from school at the pub on Saturday, three of them are loved up these days, none of them stayed past nine because somebody had to be home for couple Netflix night with the slippers laid out on the rug."
"Look at those two on the train, proper loved up, sharing headphones and smiling at absolutely nothing."
"Ever since their first date they've been ridiculously loved up, doing that soft little voice like the rest of us aren't trying to eat our chips in peace."
Where it comes from
British English, recorded from the late 20th century. It builds on the pattern of adjective plus up to mean filled with or carried away by a feeling, so loved up lands as soaked in love. It got a big boost in UK tabloids and celebrity chat in the 1990s, then settled into everyday speech.
Other ways to say it
Editors of this term
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