If you catch a guy making prolonged eye contact with you, you might wonder: why does he stare at me so intensely?

There are a few different reasons why we stare at people. And it's not just guys — women are certainly guilty of staring at others, too!

It's easy to hope for the best when psycho-analyzing your crush, and even easier to prepare for the worst.

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That's why it's good to understand the reasons why men stare at women so intensely.

1. He could be flirting with you.

If you catch a guy staring at you, it could be because he finds you sexually attractive.

Intense eye contact is sometimes how a man shows interest.

If his body language is also faced toward you, he’s definitely interested.

2. He could be telling you something.

Believe it or not, prolonged eye contact is a form of communication.

If a guy stares at you longingly, it could be a good sign that he’s trying to drop a few hints.

If he holds eye contact with you, it’s a sign at least that you make him feel comfortable.

3. He could have been raised to give good eye contact.

Sorry, friends. There is a slight chance that his immaculate eye contact has nothing to do with you.

Your crush could be staring at you intensely because he has an intense face.

Pay attention to how he looks at your friends or random people walking by. If you catch a guy staring at everyone else, giving deep eye contact with you as much as the waiter, it’s probably not personal to you.

4. You look familiar to him.

Have you ever not been able to stop looking at someone so much because they look familiar?

That could be another reason as to why the man of your dreams won't stop locking eyes with you.

Your crush could be staring at you so much because he's trying to jog his memory with your face.

Intense eye contact is not always a sign that you and the apple of your eye are bound to fall in love.

5. He is not paying attention to you.

Sometimes a guy drifts off into space, and well, isn't thinking about you at all.

You could easily misconstrue eye contact for him being distracted.

If you try to strike up a conversation with him and he doesn't seem that excited to be talking to you, proceed with caution.

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What to Do if You Are (Or Are Not) Interested in the Man Staring At You

It doesn’t take a relationship expert to advise you to make a move on a guy if you catch him staring at you all the time.

You seriously have nothing to lose by asking him out or flirting with him. Or you could flirt right back with your body language as Marilyn Sutherland, Relationship and Communication Coach says, "If you do feel safe under their stare, looking at them directly and smiling sends a message that you see them and are acknowledging that. The bigger the smile, the more open you seem to be to them."

Love Coach Ronnie Ann Ryan agrees that if you are interested you should, "let a man know through your body language that you are approachable, and won't be rude when he takes a chance on starting a conversation."

If you’re interested in this guy who stares intensely, stare intensely right back!

Likewise, avoiding eye contact is a non-verbal way to communicate your discomfort. So if you’re not interested in him, avoiding his gaze could be a subtle way to drop a hint.

Ryan agrees with looking away but also walking away does the trick too, "Leering and staring are not flattering and most likely leave you feeling uncomfortable. Instinctively, people know that flirting and staring are not the same thing and have different agendas. Flirting is often friendly. Staring is not."

But in all honesty, the best way to know what it means when a guy stares at you is to ask him, and if it freaks you out be direct and tell him it makes you uncomfortable.

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Izzy Casey is a writer who covers pop culture, news, and entertainment.