He'll say it when he truly means it. You can't rush those things. I've been guilt tripped into telling someone I love them and so I said it and it felt insincere. It takes as long as it takes.

Love expects nothing in return. Sharing love is not a transaction. You do not tell someone you love them and then "give up" on them when the word doesn't come back to you. Also, people exclaim their love in ways other than words.

I feel the word "love" is overly used in this generation. He could says he loves you a thousand times but at the end, does he really mean it. Look for the actions not for the word. If he treats you like a queen does it really matter. No relationships is the same so good luck on your journey ;)

Not this again

He sound emotionally unavailable. If he isn't returning the love, get out.

show his love in different ways
Don't give up on him
Instead pay close attention , you'll be able to see subtleties that he loves you

It seems like you need to hear the words, but does he show you he loves you in other ways? Does he massage your feet when you're tired, or buy you gelato when you've been to the dentist? Maybe he has a different way of expressing himself.

To me, 8 months is not nearly enough time to get to know and love someone from a fully informed authentic place. (I'm a woman by the way).

Don't put pressure on the words. Does he show you he loves you? That's really the only thing that matters. My now husband didn't say it the first time I said it to him... I took him over a year to say it on his own terms. But from the day we met, his actions always spoke louder than his words.

He means something when he uses the word. The word is not a big deal to me, I use it way too soon.

I disagree with anyone who says that hearing the words doesn't matter. Sure, it can be used too soon. Sure, people can say it without really meaning it. However, all that crap about how you shouldn't need to hear the words but just watch what they do is also a trap. That leads the other person into constantly trying to figure out how the other one feels, and is completely open to interpretation. I agree that if its been a reasonable length of time (6 months, for sure) and the other person refuses to say those words out loud, that it, at the very least, indicates discomfort with the expression of feelings, and that can mean a problem with intimacy. These are issues that can cause a huge rift in relationships, and if one person's needs (ie, the need to have verbal reassurence) is consistently ignored, it's not a healthy relationship.