In some languages, love and pity get rolled into the same word

A study of over 2,000 languages shows how words used to describe feelings vary across cultures

father and daughter

A large study suggests that the words used to describe emotions are shaped by culture.

monkeybusinessimages/iStock/Getty Images Plus

Lexically speaking, love is love. Except when it’s not. In some languages, the word for love comes tinged with pity.