We cannot really love anybody without whom we never laugh.

Repplier’s line links affection to shared mirth: laughter is treated not as a decorative extra in relationships but as evidence of ease, intimacy, and mutual understanding. To “really love” someone implies a bond in which one can be unguarded—where humor is safe, welcomed, and reciprocated. The claim also suggests a practical test of closeness: if a relationship never makes room for laughter, it may be constrained by fear, formality, or emotional distance. In this view, laughter functions as a social solvent, dissolving self-importance and creating the kind of companionship in which love can deepen and endure.