If eyes are the window to the soul, then eye contact is a dead giveaway regarding what someone is looking for as they shift their gaze while talking to you. Not that we should be totally surprised. Most of us know the eyes say a lot about someone's intentions.

Looking into a man's eyes will reveal if he loves you or not.

A 2014 study conducted at the University of Chicago has confirmed that you — yes, you! — can learn how to tell if a guy likes you but just wants to have some fun, or if he likes you and is looking for something meaningful and long-lasting ... just by watching his eye movements and taking note of where they most frequently land.

I know, I know. First, we had to focus on body language to be able to tell what a possible love interest might be thinking and whether it relates to love vs lust, and now this? It's so much work trying to scoop up a boyfriend (or even a one-night stand)!

So, how can you tell if a guy likes you? Easy! Making eye contact, even for the briefest of moments, means you're looking to connect with someone on an emotional level, whereas eyes looking downward at the body instead of in the other person's eyes means their desire for intimacy is more prominent. Studies from 2020 show that people who engage in more eye contact with a potential partner are often perceived as more attractive and are more likely to be seen as romantically interested.

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I always thought that looking downward was something people just naturally did when they were bored with a conversation because it seemed more polite to look at their body than to completely stare off into the distance. But, based on this new information, I've been telling men, women, and everyone in between that I want them because I get bored easily. 

Lead author of the study, Stephanie Cacioppo, explains that, although this research doesn't scientifically prove that love at first sight, exists or explain why people fall in love with each other, "These patterns of response provide the first clues regarding how automatic attentional processes, such as eye gaze, may differentiate feelings of love from feelings of desire toward strangers."

To prove their scientific theory, students were given two sets of black-and-white photos. The first set contained images of heterosexual couples engaging with each other in a not-necessarily romantic way, and the second set showed members of the opposite sex staring directly into the camera. The students were then asked to decide if the mood of those in the photos was intimate or romantic.

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Through the analysis of the eye movements, both the men and women participating in the study concentrated on the faces in the photos when saying the mood was one of romance.

In contrast, they focused more on the bodies in the photos when deciding what they were witnessing in the images was a desire for intimacy. And voila! The proof is pretty much in the bag.

These findings don't mean these outcomes are guaranteed every time you either make eye contact with someone or catch them staring at parts of your body other than your eyes. But, I guess, for those out on the prowl, learning to read eye movements, just like learning to read body language, can bring you one step closer to figuring out this whole crazy "love vs lust" thing. Once you've mastered that, there's no telling what you can conquer next.

Amanda Chatel is an essayist, lifestyle, and intimacy health writer with a focus on relationships, women's reproductive rights, and mental health. Her bylines have appeared in Harper's Bazaar, The Atlantic, Forbes, Livingly, Mic, The Bolde, Huffington Post, and others.