A phrase from historical newspaper personal ads, explained with real examples from the archive.
Affectionate by nature.
| Type | Historical language |
|---|---|
| Category | Description |
| Earliest example in the archive | December 1886, The Anglo-American Matrimonial Journal (Toronto) |
| Most common | 1860s to the 1910s |
Disposition was the everyday word for temperament, and personal ads specified it often: a cheerful disposition, a good disposition, a loving disposition. A 1907 Salt Lake City ad asks for a lady of loving disposition, aged 35 to 40, with marriage in mind.
A gentleman, aged 28, fair, curly hair, height 5 feet 7 inches, Christian, Conservative, very fond of music, science, literature, lawn-tennis, riding, and travelling,…
Maggie, aged 25, loving disposition, attractive, domesticated, well educated, true, and honourable, would like to meet a professional gentleman of moderate means. Maggie…
GENTLEMAN, 45, WANTS TO MEET Gentile lady of loving disposition, 35-40; object matrimony. N-46, Tribune.
WANTED—A true companion and chum, from 48 to 60 years old. She must be a lady of a loving disposition. Object matrimony; no fooling. Box 48X, Republican.
Today people write affectionate or cuddly.
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How this fits into 170 years of personal ad shorthand: From Object Matrimony to LTR: How Personal Ads Learned to Talk in Code.
All dictionary entries · The Personals Archive · How to write a personal ad
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