Love', also comes from the Latin 'liber' meaning 'to liberate' or, 'to free'. Dictionaries give scores of definitions of various aspects of love and the Thesaurus gives a whole page of synonyms. A local ashram has a large board covered with scores of definitions of love, which visitors have contributed, over the years. We tried writing out as many as we could, defining love as broadly as possible, to cover it's many aspects. Write out your own working definition of love.
Electricity is, similarly, an energy.
When you direct love, as an energy, to another person, even over a distance, they should feel it and have a response. If they have conditional beliefs and blocks against accepting love, they may suppress that response but it will still be there. If you are near the person, you should notice the reaction. If you can tune into this you will realise that what you have put out has been received and appreciated. This will build your confidence and encourage you to use unconditional, more, in future.