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Love Scoring in Tennis: How to Read the Score
Love means zero in tennis. Learn how to call scores, distinguish a love hold from a love break, and separate the term’s meaning from its uncertain origin.
In tennis scoring, “love” means zero points. A player at love has not won a point in the current game—not necessarily in the set or match. The server’s score is called first, so 15-love means the server has won one point and the receiver has won none. These conventions appear in Rule 5 of the ITF’s 2026 Rules of Tennis.
How to read a score containing love
In a standard game, the first three points a player wins are labeled 15, 30 and 40. Those are scoring labels, not point totals: 30-love represents two points to none, not 30 points to none.
| Score called | Points won: server–receiver | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Love-all | 0–0 | Neither player has won a point in this game |
| Fifteen-love | 1–0 | The server won the opening point |
| Love-fifteen | 0–1 | The receiver won the opening point |
| Forty-love | 3–0 | The server is one point from winning the game |
| Love-forty | 0–3 | The receiver is one point from breaking serve |
“All” signals a tied score; at three points each, the call changes to deuce, rather than 40-all. Under standard advantage scoring, a player must then win two consecutive points to win the game. The USTA’s scoring guide explains both conventions.
For a simple worked example, suppose the server wins the first two points. The score moves from love-all to 15-love, then 30-love. If the receiver wins the next point, it becomes 30-15: neither side is at love anymore. The score resets to love-all when the next standard game starts, with the new server’s score called first.
A love hold is not the same as a love break
A hold to love means the server won the game without losing a point. The progression is 15-love, 30-love, 40-love, then game: four service points won out of four.
A break to love is the reverse. The receiver wins all four points, taking the score through love-15, love-30 and love-40 before winning the game. A break is a game won by the receiving side, as defined in the USTA’s tennis glossary. At love-40, the server faces three break points: the receiver can win the game on any of the next three points, even if the server saves the first two.
For statistical interpretation, the distinction matters. A love hold describes four service points won without reply; a love break describes four return points won without reply. Neither tells you whether the points came from aces, rally winners or errors, and neither alone establishes sustained dominance or mental strength. It is a four-point result, not a match-wide performance measure.
Games, sets and tiebreaks use different counts
A 6–0 set means six games to none, not six points to none. Its losing player may still have won points within those games.
Tiebreaks use ordinary point numbers instead of 15–30–40. The ITF specifies the calls as “zero,” “one,” “two,” “three,” and so on. A 3–0 tiebreak lead therefore means three points to none—not 40-love. See Rules 5 and 6 for the distinction between game and set scoring.
Why is zero called love?
The meaning is settled; the origin is not. Merriam-Webster’s account favors a connection with “playing for love”—playing without monetary stakes—but does not present it as proven.
The familiar explanation involving the French l’œuf, meaning “the egg,” relies on an egg resembling a written zero. Merriam-Webster identifies this as folk etymology, noting the lack of evidence that l’œuf was used in French to mean zero. For the wider story behind the scoring labels, see our tennis scoring history.