---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Love is the use one makes of another."
description: "\"Love is the use one makes of another.\" — Michael Ondaatje"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/015/michael-ondaatje-940_love_love-is-the-use-one-makes-of-another-283_2836783.png"
---

#  Love is the use one makes of another.

![“Love is the use one makes of another.” quote by Michael Ondaatje](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/015/michael-ondaatje-940_love_love-is-the-use-one-makes-of-another-283_2836783.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/015/michael-ondaatje-940_love_love-is-the-use-one-makes-of-another-283_2836783.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/015/michael-ondaatje-940_love_love-is-the-use-one-makes-of-another-283_2836783.png)

> “Love is the use one makes of another.”

[Michael Ondaatje](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-ondaatje/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Love is defined by how we use and treat another person, not merely by feeling.

**In simple terms:** Love is how we act toward someone.

Key Takeaway

Treat others with respect and purpose.

Themes

love relationships ethics dependence identity

Mood

reflective intimate

Type

literary philosophical

When to use this quote

- romantic relationships
- friendships
- family bonds
- caregiving roles

Key Concepts

existentialism interpersonal dynamics

Questions to Reflect On

- Do you use love to empower others?
- How does love shape identity?

A Different Perspective

Love can become possessive if not balanced.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Love Does](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love-does-231468/) [Love is](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love-is/) [Love Use](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love-use-548849/) [Makes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/makes/) [Use](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/use/) [Use Makes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/use-makes-404808/)

## Related quotes

> [It's not what you've got, it's what you use that makes a difference.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zig-ziglar/it-s-not-what-you-ve-got-it-s-what-you-use-that-makes-a-difference/)

[Zig Ziglar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zig-ziglar/)

> [For it is not the shape, but their use, that makes them angels.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hobbes/for-it-is-not-the-shape-but-their-use-that-makes-them-angels/)

[Thomas Hobbes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hobbes/)

> [Sadly...this answer applies to both men and woman. Most, are simply to lost inside themselves to truly Love anything or anyone. A grotesque balance…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladislas-nikilovic/sadly-this-answer-applies-to-both-men-and-woman-most-are-simply-to/)

[Vladislas Nikilovic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladislas-nikilovic/)

> [“I will not love you. I will have no use for you other than sex and photo ops. That is something you might want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alessandra-torre/i-will-not-love-you-i-will-have-no-use-for-you-other-than-sex-and/)

[Alessandra Torre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alessandra-torre/)

> [Ladies take care of your own hearts...when it comes to love, use your brain instead.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mercy-pheona/ladies-take-care-of-your-own-hearts-when-it-comes-to-love-use-your/)

[Mercy Pheona](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mercy-pheona/)

> [Love is everything. Without it, I have no use for this world. When I'm not in love with someone, I feel empty and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joshua-radin/love-is-everything-without-it-i-have-no-use-for-this-world-when-i-m/)

[Joshua Radin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joshua-radin/)

> [What is love except another name for the use of positive reinforcement? Or vice versa.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/what-is-love-except-another-name-for-the-use-of-positive/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [You're never gonna love me, so what's the use ?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ream/you-re-never-gonna-love-me-so-what-s-the-use/)

[Ream](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ream/)

> [It really hurts that some1 you love most, is the 1 who use you for her own sake.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alvin-cuyacot-dedicatoria/it-really-hurts-that-some1-you-love-most-is-the-1-who-use-you-for-her/)

[Alvin Cuyacot Dedicatoria](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alvin-cuyacot-dedicatoria/)

> [“Is it - I'm not certain - possible to love someone if your first interest is the use you can make of him? Doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/truman-capote/is-it-i-m-not-certain-possible-to-love-someone-if-your-first-interest/)

[Truman Capote](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/truman-capote/)

> [It really hurts that the 1 you love most, is the 1 who will use you for her own sake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alvin-cuyacot-dedicatoria/it-really-hurts-that-the-1-you-love-most-is-the-1-who-will-use-you/)

[Alvin Cuyacot Dedicatoria](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alvin-cuyacot-dedicatoria/)

> [When a man is in love how can he use old words? Should a woman desiring her lover lie down with grammarians and linguists?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nizar-qabbani/when-a-man-is-in-love-how-can-he-use-old-words-should-a-woman/)

[Nizar Qabbani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nizar-qabbani/)

> [It really hurts that the 1 ou love most , is the 1 who will use you for her own sake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alvin-cuyacot-dedicatoria/it-really-hurts-that-the-1-ou-love-most-is-the-1-who-will-use-you-for/)

[Alvin Cuyacot Dedicatoria](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alvin-cuyacot-dedicatoria/)

> [Use love, use love as a bridge.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gustavo-cerati/use-love-use-love-as-a-bridge/)

[Gustavo Cerati](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gustavo-cerati/)

> [Keep your love, I have no use for it anymore.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richelle-mead/keep-your-love-i-have-no-use-for-it-anymore/)

[Richelle Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richelle-mead/)

## More by Michael Ondaatje

> [“In spite of this, our table's status on the Oronsay continued to be minimal, while those at the Captain's Table were constantly toasting to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-ondaatje/in-spite-of-this-our-table-s-status-on-the-oronsay-continued-to-be/)

[Michael Ondaatje](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-ondaatje/)

> [He will hear the rain before he feels it, a clicking on the dry grass, on the olive leaves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-ondaatje/he-will-hear-the-rain-before-he-feels-it-a-clicking-on-the-dry-grass/)

[Michael Ondaatje](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-ondaatje/)

> [“Whenever her father was alone with a dog in a house he would lean over and smell the skin at the base of its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-ondaatje/whenever-her-father-was-alone-with-a-dog-in-a-house-he-would-lean/)

[Michael Ondaatje](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-ondaatje/)

> [“...those who had risked everything at a riverbend on a left turn and so discovered a fortune.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-ondaatje/those-who-had-risked-everything-at-a-riverbend-on-a-left-turn-and-so/)

[Michael Ondaatje](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-ondaatje/)

> [“All over the world there must be people like us, Anna had said then, wounded in some way by falling in love - seemingly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-ondaatje/all-over-the-world-there-must-be-people-like-us-anna-had-said-then/)

[Michael Ondaatje](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-ondaatje/)

> [Her father had taught her about hands. About a dog's paws. Whenever her father was alone with a dog in a house he would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-ondaatje/her-father-had-taught-her-about-hands-about-a-dog-s-paws-whenever-her/)

[Michael Ondaatje](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-ondaatje/)

> [What is interesting and important happens mostly in secret, in places where there is no power. Nothing much of lasting value ever happens at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-ondaatje/what-is-interesting-and-important-happens-mostly-in-secret-in-places/)

[Michael Ondaatje](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-ondaatje/)

> [There's more danger in the violence you don't face.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-ondaatje/there-s-more-danger-in-the-violence-you-don-t-face/)

[Michael Ondaatje](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-ondaatje/)

> [From this point on, she whispered, we will either find or lose our souls.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-ondaatje/from-this-point-on-she-whispered-we-will-either-find-or-lose-our-souls/)

[Michael Ondaatje](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-ondaatje/)

> [“You know it is the most relaxed thing when you when you sit with a best friend and you know there is nothing you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-ondaatje/you-know-it-is-the-most-relaxed-thing-when-you-when-you-sit-with-a/)

[Michael Ondaatje](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-ondaatje/)

> [“There was no control except the " mood of his power... and it is for this reason it is good you never heard him…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-ondaatje/there-was-no-control-except-the-mood-of-his-power-and-it-is-for-this/)

[Michael Ondaatje](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-ondaatje/)

> [You're getting everyone's point of view at the same time, which for me, is the perfect state for a novel: a cubist state, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-ondaatje/you-re-getting-everyone-s-point-of-view-at-the-same-time-which-for-me/)

[Michael Ondaatje](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-ondaatje/)

> [I see the poem or the novel ending with an open door.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-ondaatje/i-see-the-poem-or-the-novel-ending-with-an-open-door/)

[Michael Ondaatje](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-ondaatje/)

> [“The Time Around Scars: A girl whom I've not spoken to or shared coffee with for several years writes of an old scar. On…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-ondaatje/the-time-around-scars-a-girl-whom-i-ve-not-spoken-to-or-shared-coffee/)

[Michael Ondaatje](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-ondaatje/)

> [“- Daca ti-as incredinta viata mea, ai scapa-o pe jos. Nu-i asa?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-ondaatje/daca-ti-as-incredinta-viata-mea-ai-scapa-o-pe-jos-nu-i-asa/)

[Michael Ondaatje](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-ondaatje/)

[Explore all 322 Michael Ondaatje quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-ondaatje/)

## More Love quotes

> [Whatever meaning 'Annie's Song' had for me on a personal level, there was also a larger context. It could just as easily have been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-denver/whatever-meaning-annie-s-song-had-for-me-on-a-personal-level-there/)

[John Denver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-denver/)

> [Life is full of change. That's how we learn and grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-full-of-change-that-s-how-we-learn-and-grow/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [I need a bath." He chuckled. "You smell of smoke, as do I." The duke turned, leaning heavily on his cane. "Jameson, open the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-hawkins/i-need-a-bath-he-chuckled-you-smell-of-smoke-as-do-i-the-duke-turned/)

[Karen Hawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-hawkins/)

> [I love going to Columbia, Missouri. That is a really underrated campus. It shocked me when I went there because I really didn't know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kirk-herbstreit/i-love-going-to-columbia-missouri-that-is-a-really-underrated-campus/)

[Kirk Herbstreit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kirk-herbstreit/)

> [Life works most perfectly when a reciprocal love relationship is in place between man and God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beth-moore/life-works-most-perfectly-when-a-reciprocal-love-relationship-is-in/)

[Beth Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beth-moore/)

> [We talk to God--that is prayer; God talks to us--that is inspiration.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-emilie-cady/we-talk-to-god-that-is-prayer-god-talks-to-us-that-is-inspiration/)

[H. Emilie Cady](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-emilie-cady/)

> [I fell in love with social work, and that was my undoing as a poet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-rakosi/i-fell-in-love-with-social-work-and-that-was-my-undoing-as-a-poet/)

[Carl Rakosi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-rakosi/)

> [You cant be controlling in improv.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-walsh/you-cant-be-controlling-in-improv/)

[Matt Walsh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-walsh/)

> [Everyone needs someone to love, and I choose you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/everyone-needs-someone-to-love-and-i-choose-you/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [I think, here's what I've realized from interviewing people, and I've been very open about my Catholicism and my love of Christ and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-mohr/i-think-here-s-what-i-ve-realized-from-interviewing-people-and-i-ve/)

[Jay Mohr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-mohr/)

> [“To be loved by a man, truly loved, made a woman feel as if she could burst. Of course, Lia was strong and could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melody-anne/to-be-loved-by-a-man-truly-loved-made-a-woman-feel-as-if-she-could/)

[Melody Anne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melody-anne/)

> [So when you take those tears, don't look to see I'm alright. …\*Seal - Violet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-nickel/so-when-you-take-those-tears-don-t-look-to-see-i-m-alright-seal-violet/)

[Eric Nickel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-nickel/)

> [Two things revolutionised life: moving to the countryside and falling in love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-love/two-things-revolutionised-life-moving-to-the-countryside-and-falling/)

[Nick Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-love/)

> [“That horrible stinging sensation returned, the muscles behind my eyes straining as the first tear began to fall. “I’m scared, too. For eighteen months…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/devon-ashley/that-horrible-stinging-sensation-returned-the-muscles-behind-my-eyes/)

[Devon Ashley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/devon-ashley/)

> [I could program a 'fabulous, I love it' kind of hit season right now. I'm more interested in breaking boundaries, telling a story, defying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-c-wolfe/i-could-program-a-fabulous-i-love-it-kind-of-hit-season-right-now-i-m/)

[George C. Wolfe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-c-wolfe/)

[Browse all 233,035 Love quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "Love is the use one makes of another.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Michael Ondaatje"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-ondaatje/love-is-the-use-one-makes-of-another/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Love"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-ondaatje/love-is-the-use-one-makes-of-another/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/015/michael-ondaatje-940_love_love-is-the-use-one-makes-of-another-283_2836783.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/015/michael-ondaatje-940_love_love-is-the-use-one-makes-of-another-283_2836783.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/015/michael-ondaatje-940_love_love-is-the-use-one-makes-of-another-283_2836783.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Love is the use one makes of another.” — Michael Ondaatje",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Michael Ondaatje",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-ondaatje/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Love is the use one makes...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-ondaatje/love-is-the-use-one-makes-of-another/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-ondaatje/love-is-the-use-one-makes-of-another/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
