Have you ever heard of the five love languages? I’d venture to say you probably have, seeing as how popular they’ve become. And with good reason. Made famous by Gary Chapman in his 1992 book, The Five Love Languages: How to Express Heartfelt Commitment to Your Mate, words of affirmation, quality time, physical touch, acts of service, and receiving gifts are ways you can express love and strengthen your relationship with your partner.

Let’s talk a little more about what each love language entails. Words of affirmation takes the form of compliments, love notes, encouragement, praise, expressing appreciation, and the like. Quality time involves being fully present with your partner while engaging in meaningful, thoughtful interactions. Physical touch goes beyond sex, and may include things like gentle passing touches, holding hands, cuddling, and other forms of physical contact. Acts of service are things you do for your partner that can make them feel appreciated. These can be doing chores you know they particularly detest or making them breakfast in bed. Receiving gifts may sound like an expensive way to show your partner some love, but you don’t have to drop a pretty penny to express appreciation. It’s more about the sentiment, the effort, the thoughtfulness put into picking something out specifically for your partner.

Now, there are tons of fun little quizzes you can take to determine what your primary love language is and in what order the rest follow. But perhaps engaging in these love language activities with your partner and learning through doing may be an even more enjoyable process. If you already know your preferred love language, talk to your partner about it. Ask for what you’d like, because your partner can’t read your mind, and open up the conversation and give space for your partner to share their preferences, as well.

You might be surprised by just how much your relationship can blossom when you love your partner the way they need you to.