platonic love
noun
often capitalized P
1
: love conceived by Plato as ascending from passion for the individual to contemplation of the universal and ideal
2
: a close relationship between two persons in which sexual desire is nonexistent or has been suppressed or sublimated
Example Sentences
Recent Examples on the Web Summering is – among other things – a platonic love story between four friends. 
Risa Sarachan, Forbes, 12 Aug. 2022 The other definition—pronounced rather differently—refers to God’s love, a love that is distinct from romantic love (eros) or platonic love (philia). Erik Kain, Forbes, 7 July 2022 However, the show’s depiction of friendship – particularly that between Charlie and Tao – is challenging the idea of what platonic love can look like. Chichi Offor, refinery29.com, 29 May 2022 Set in a 2012 London house-share, with flashbacks to suburban adolescence in the early 2000s, the series is a deep dive into bad dates, heartaches and humiliations and asks whether platonic love can survive romantic love as the protagonists grow up. Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 15 Mar. 2022 The result is a record that challenges the notion of experimental music’s emotional capability via the undeniable warmth of romantic, familial, and platonic love. Natalie Maher, Harper's BAZAAR, 23 Nov. 2021 Since the idea of a platonic love story comes from your own lives, do your characters resemble you? Selome Hailu, Variety, 10 Sep. 2021 The concept of platonic love comes directly from director Nikole Beckwith's experiences with deep friendship. David Oliver, USA TODAY, 23 Apr. 2021 In 1925 Kansas, a teenage girl suffers an emotional breakdown following a platonic love affair. Los Angeles Times, 26 Mar. 2021 See More
Risa Sarachan, Forbes, 12 Aug. 2022 The other definition—pronounced rather differently—refers to God’s love, a love that is distinct from romantic love (eros) or platonic love (philia). Erik Kain, Forbes, 7 July 2022 However, the show’s depiction of friendship – particularly that between Charlie and Tao – is challenging the idea of what platonic love can look like. Chichi Offor, refinery29.com, 29 May 2022 Set in a 2012 London house-share, with flashbacks to suburban adolescence in the early 2000s, the series is a deep dive into bad dates, heartaches and humiliations and asks whether platonic love can survive romantic love as the protagonists grow up. Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 15 Mar. 2022 The result is a record that challenges the notion of experimental music’s emotional capability via the undeniable warmth of romantic, familial, and platonic love. Natalie Maher, Harper's BAZAAR, 23 Nov. 2021 Since the idea of a platonic love story comes from your own lives, do your characters resemble you? Selome Hailu, Variety, 10 Sep. 2021 The concept of platonic love comes directly from director Nikole Beckwith's experiences with deep friendship. David Oliver, USA TODAY, 23 Apr. 2021 In 1925 Kansas, a teenage girl suffers an emotional breakdown following a platonic love affair. Los Angeles Times, 26 Mar. 2021 See More Word History
First Known Use
1631, in the meaning defined at sense 1