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Why do we say "Absence makes the heart grow fonder"?

Well-Known Expressions

Absence makes the heart grow fonder

Meaning:

Time away from somebody increases friendship and love.

Background:

The first known use of this phrase is by Sextus Propertius (c 54 b.c. - a.d. 2) who wrote Semper in absentes felicior aestus amantes

The first reference in USA literature is in a paper by Benjamin Franklin in 1755.

There are a number of variations such as 'Absence makes the heart grow younger' (James Joyce, Ulysses) and 'Absence makes the heart grow fonder - distance makes affections wander'.

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