carry a torch for

Meaning

Verb

• To love or to be romantically infatuated with, especially when such feelings are not reciprocated.

Origin

• From the metaphor of a burning flame, to keep a fire burning.
• The association of a torch with love may date to the Greek and Roman tradition of a
• wedding torch, lit in the bride’s hearth on her wedding night, then used to light the hearth in her new home. Such a torch is associated with the Greek god of marriage Hymenaios.