The word "honorificabilitudinitatibus" is the dative singular conjugation of a real medieval Latin word. Dante actually used it more than once, as did other writers of the period. A translation of it would be "the state of being able to achieve honors."

The title in its current form is taken from the Third Folio. The earlier Folios have the title "Loues Labour's Lost." There is much debate over where to place the apostrophe (if at all) in "Labour's." Some scholars think that Shakespeare intended it to mean "labour is", which would make it "Love's Labour is Lost." But others argue that there should be no apostrophe at all in "Labours" (thus making it the nominative plural). This is how the play is known in other countries - for example, in France it is called "Labours of the Love Lost" or sometimes "Sorrows of the Love Lost."