This would be in the context of a romantic relationship/partnership. My overarching view of this is that I feel like in our times and culture those words have become very cheap. Seeing people treat each other like total garbage and try to put a band-aid on things by saying the magic words. Can love not be expressed by your actions, your nature, and your respect towards another person? I know when someone loves me, they don’t have to tell me also.
I don’t agree it has been “cheapened”, its meaning depends on the relationship itself. I am currently in a new relationship, we’ve been together for 3 months. I am the kind to be more affectionate, and am often saying that I like her. I sometimes get that back, but I wish it was more often, as I like confirmation and affection too (and I told her that much). But saying “I love you” would be… very significant for me, and we are really not there yet. And also, from what I understand about her previous history, she might very well never have been quite there, despite having been in a very long relationship, so uh, yeah. Knowing that, if I heard her say “I love you” to me, it’d be extremely meaningful.