If you opened this article, it's probably because you're either guilty of throwing these words around, or just curious as to what a freshman in college has to say about love. Love. Such a powerful word, at least it used to be. Today, the word has been stripped of its deeper meaning and turned into a slang that is used on a regular basis. It isn't special, it isn't rare, and half the time, it isn't even real. How did the three most romantic words in history go from being so significant to so meaningless?

Simply put: because we crave love. Maybe not intensely, maybe not even consciously, but we all do... and can you really blame us? We see it in books, we see it in films, and we even see it on the way to class (PDA should be illegal). Love is everywhere, and because of that, we decide we want it too. So we look! We look for it in the person that we once saw as nothing but a good friend, we look for it in our cute lab partner that we only talk to when an assignment is due, and in the worst cases, we look for it in frat houses that reek of inebriation. Then when we finally find that special someone crazy enough to like us back, we cling to them, and we call it love.

Sound questionable? That's because it kind of is. Nowadays, people believe that if they feel the slightest beat in their heart for a person, it has to be love. So for the sake of confusion, I put together a list of words and definitions of what that feeling in your stomach may actually mean.

Crush - a (usually brief) attraction towards someone
Infatuation - an intense, short-lived passion or admiration for someone
Lust - a desire to be with someone on a "physical level"
Jealousy - envious feelings when you think you should have something that you do not
Loneliness - sadness because of the lack of companionship in one's life
Appreciation - the recognition and enjoyment of the good qualities of someone
Fondness - affection or liking for someone or something
Yearning - a feeling of intense longing for something
Passion - a strong, uncontrollable emotion towards someone/something
Friendship - a bond of mutual affection, exclusive of romantic relations

While it's true that love may mean the most, it doesn't mean that all that other stuff isn't cool too. I think it's important for us to be aware of the commitment we're making to someone when we say "I Love You." Because those three words, although common, are the most important ones that you can say to someone.

But what do I know anyways? I'm just 19.