To be loved is a strength. To love is a weakness.

Attributed to Zsa Zsa Gabor, the line plays with a deliberately cynical, performative view of romance: being loved confers social leverage, security, and validation—forms of “strength” that can be displayed and traded on—whereas loving exposes the lover to dependence, vulnerability, and loss of control. The epigram’s bite comes from reversing the sentimental ideal that love ennobles; instead, it frames affection as a power imbalance. Read as a piece of celebrity-era wit, it also reflects a persona built on glamour and self-protection, where emotional self-sufficiency is prized and attachment is treated as a liability.