• Tough-love

    Full definition of tough-love

    Verb

    1. To practice tough love; To treat someone with compassionate but stringent discipline in order to improve their behavior.
      • 1999, Estella Conwill Majozo , Come Out the Wilderness: Memoir of a Black Woman Artist , The system's got some of our finest men being tough-loved to death!
      • 2000 , Malinda Teel , Fortitude: True Stories of True Grit , In time, the counselors at the program tough-loved me into acknowledging that I was using my disabilities as an excuse to drink and drug.
      • 2002 , John Cantwell Kiley , The Breakaway Pope , He must be tough-loved by the Church.
      • 2004, Thomas Henderson, ‎Frank Luksa , In Control: The Rebirth of an NFL Legend , He tough-loved the hell out of me without ever knowing what tough love meant.
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