{"id":3697,"date":"2020-06-26T15:37:01","date_gmt":"2020-06-26T15:37:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.clozemaster.com\/blog\/?p=3697"},"modified":"2020-08-15T15:59:49","modified_gmt":"2020-08-15T15:59:49","slug":"i-love-you-in-french","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.clozemaster.com\/blog\/i-love-you-in-french\/","title":{"rendered":"\u201cI Love You\u201d in French \u2013 The Many Ways to Talk about Love in French"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/p>\n

In the English speaking world, we so often hear French referred to as \u2018the language of love.\u2019 And today we\u2019re going to take some time to focus on that very subject \u2013 love. We\u2019ll go over how to talk about love in French including how to talk about falling in love, and of course how to say \u2018I love you\u2019 in French.<\/p>\n

Likewise, we\u2019ll also go over some of the other words and phrases that you should know with l\u2019amour<\/em> (love) and aimer<\/em> (to love).<\/p>\n

<\/a>Saying \u2018I Love You\u2019 in French<\/h2>\n

Let\u2019s start with the big words themselves. If you\u2019re a Francophile then you\u2019ve probably already heard this first expression plenty of times as a staple of every love song from Edith Piaf to Camille.<\/p>\n

Je t\u2019aime
\n<\/em> \u2018I love you\u2019<\/p>\n

It\u2019s three simple words, but there are few things to notice here. First, the word te<\/em> (you) is nestled neatly between the subject je<\/em> and the verb aimer<\/em>. Second, the word te<\/em> has been shortened to a simple t\u2019 <\/em>since it comes before a word starting with a vowel.<\/p>\n

If you want to say \u2018I love you\u2019 in French to multiple people then you just swap out the word te <\/em>for vous<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Je vous aime<\/em>
\n\u2018I love you\u2019<\/p>\n

Just like the phrase je t\u2019aime,<\/em> the direct object vous<\/em> has to come between je<\/em> and the verb aimer<\/em>.<\/p>\n

<\/a>Adding on to Your Love in French<\/h2>\n

When we feel strongly about someone, we rarely stop with just one simple sentence. And for French-speakers, it\u2019s the same. One you\u2019ve said that you love someone, then you can add onto that feeling with so many extra words to make it even sweeter. We\u2019ve got a few here.<\/p>\n

Je t\u2019aime tellement<\/em>
\nI love you so much<\/p>\n

Je t’aimerai toujours
\n<\/span><\/em>I’ll love you forever<\/span><\/p>\n

Je t\u2019aime plus chaque jour<\/em>
\nI love you more each day<\/p>\n

Je t\u2019aime de tout mon coeur
\n<\/em>I love you with all my heart<\/p>\n

Of course, you might want to talk about your love without actually having to say the phrase je t\u2019aime<\/em>. You can also say that you\u2019re crazy about someone or mad about someone. This expression is a bit tricky though since the adjective changes depending on the gender of the speaker.<\/p>\n

Je suis folle de toi<\/em>
\nI\u2019m crazy about you (used by a woman)<\/p>\n

Je suis fou de toi
\n<\/em> I\u2019m crazy about you (used by a man)<\/p>\n

<\/a>Falling in Love<\/h2>\n

Maybe we\u2019ve got too fast here because before we are in love, we have to first \u2018fall in love.\u2019 It\u2019s a great metaphor of something happening to us that comes off as inevitable as gravity and in French, the expression is actually the same. Francophones also refer to the experience as falling (tomber<\/em>).<\/p>\n

Just like when you say that you\u2019re crazy about someone, the phrase changes according to the gender of the speaker. This time however you need to keep your eye on how both the adjective and the verb change.<\/p>\n

<\/a>Je suis tomb\u00e9 amoureux de toi.<\/em>
\nI\u2019ve fallen in love with you (said by a man)<\/p>\n

<\/a>Je suis tomb\u00e9e amoureuse de toi.
\n<\/em>I\u2019ve fallen in love with you (said by a woman)<\/p>\n

You can see two differences between the two phrases. The feminine participle of tomber<\/em> has an additional e<\/em> afterwards. Likewise the adjective that describes being in love changes according to gender \u2013 amoureuse<\/em> if a woman is speaking, and amoureux<\/em> if it\u2019s a man.<\/p>\n

<\/a>Further Sweet Nothings<\/h3>\n

It\u2019s always good when we tell someone that we love them, but sometimes we want to be a bit more cute and a bit less serious. For that we have sweet nothings. Here are a few expressions that you can try out when you just want to flatter your sweetheart.<\/p>\n

Je t\u2019adore
\n<\/em> I adore you<\/p>\n

Tu me compl\u00e8tes<\/em>
\nYou complete me<\/p>\n

Je t\u2019ai dans la peau
\n<\/em> I\u2019ve got you in my skin<\/p>\n

The last phrase may seem a bit odd and is a great example of why you should never translate a phrase literally. Although when you compare it to the English phrase \u2018under my skin\u2019 you can understand that idea of having a fixation on someone.<\/p>\n

<\/a>\u201cI love it\u201d and \u201cI like it\u201d in French<\/h2>\n

When we talk about love in English, we can refer to a lot of different things. You can say that a woman loves her husband, a child loves the beach and a musician loves to play their instrument. You\u2019ll notice that all of these use the word \u2018love\u2019 to describe different feelings.<\/p>\n

In French, something similar occurs as French speakers use aimer<\/em> to describe romantic love as well as really liking something.<\/p>\n

Jacques aime la musique<\/em>
\nJacques loves \/ really likes music<\/p>\n

Le g\u00e9n\u00e9ral aime la gloire et le pouvoir<\/em>
\nThe general loves glory and power<\/p>\n

J\u2019aime danser sur du jazz<\/em>
\nI like to dance to jazz music<\/p>\n

None of these examples express romantic love but all three use the verb aimer<\/em> and sound natural to a French speaker. You can think of it this way, when you \u2018love\u2019 something that isn\u2019t a person, you\u2019re actually really liking it.<\/p>\n

If you want so that you like something with a real intensity you can use the word adorer<\/em> as well. This verb is a bit tricky and you have to pay attention to what\u2019s being loved. The general rule is if you love something, then adorer<\/em> is stronger. If you love someone, then aimer<\/em> is stronger.<\/p>\n

J\u2019aime le chocolat<\/em>
\nI like chocolate<\/p>\n

J\u2019adore le chocolat<\/em>
\nI really like\/love chocolate<\/p>\n

Je l\u2019aime<\/em>
\nI love her\/him<\/p>\n

Je l\u2019adore<\/em>
\nI really like her\/him<\/p>\n

<\/a>Saying I Like You in French<\/h2>\n

Now that you know that aimer<\/em> means \u2018to love\u2019, it\u2019s time to go a bit further. You should know that when you have the word aimer<\/em> by itself it means love. However, adding on the little word bien<\/em> at the end, you give the verb a totally different meaning.<\/p>\n

If you translate the phrase aimer bien <\/em>word for word you would get \u2018to love well.\u2019 So do you use it when you really love someone? No. And here\u2019s the thing to look out for with aimer bien<\/em>. It\u2019s actually an idiom that you should use specifically when you don\u2019t love someone romantically.<\/p>\n

Je l\u2019aime<\/em>
\nI love her\/him<\/p>\n

Je l\u2019aime bien<\/em>
\nI like her\/him a lot (as a friend, not romantically)<\/p>\n

Adding on that bien<\/em> doesn\u2019t intensify the feeling but instead makes it more platonic and less passionate. The main character of the romantic comedy \u2018La Fille Coup\u00e9e en Deux\u2019 uses this one to turn down her rather persistent suitor. When he asks tu m\u2019aimes? <\/em>(do you love me?) over and over, she answers je t\u2019aime <\/em>giving him a huge smile, only to dash his dreams by adding bien<\/em> at the end.<\/p>\n

<\/a>Other French Words with Love<\/h2>\n

In English, we attach the word \u2018love\u2019 to so many things. We talk about love stories, we sing love songs and watch romantic comedies about love triangles. And it\u2019s the same in French where you can affix the word l\u2019amour<\/em> or amoureux<\/em> to most things to similar effect. Here are a few examples that have some pretty clear meanings.<\/p>\n

Des chansons d\u2019amour
\n<\/em>Love songs<\/p>\n

La folie de l\u2019amour
\n<\/em>The madness of love<\/p>\n

Le grand amour
\n<\/em>True love<\/p>\n

Faire l\u2019amour<\/em>
\nTo make love<\/p>\n

Un triangle amoureux
\n<\/em>A love triangle<\/p>\n

Le choc amoureux<\/em>
\nMoment of falling in love (literally \u2018love shock\u2019)<\/p>\n

<\/a>A Love Story or a Love Affair<\/h3>\n

In French people can also talk about une histoire d\u2019amour<\/em>. This is another phrase to look out for. At first glance, it looks like it could mean a kind of \u2018love story.\u2019 While every language has its quirks, this one is particularly worth noting because une histoire d\u2019amour <\/em>can mean either a \u2018love story\u2019 or a \u2018love affair.\u2019<\/p>\n

How do you know the difference? There\u2019s no real rule to the matter, so you\u2019ll have to keep your eyes peeled because context is key.<\/p>\n

Tu as ton histoire d\u2019amour<\/em>
\nYou have your love story<\/p>\n

Une histoire d\u2019amour unilat\u00e9rale<\/em>
\nA one-sided love affair<\/p>\n

<\/a>Less Familiar Loves<\/h3>\n

Love stories and love songs may seem obvious, but there are quite a lot of compounds with l\u2019amour<\/em> that might be less familiar to you. For example la pomme d\u2019amour<\/em> is a snack you get at a carnival.<\/p>\n

Take a look below so you know not to be confused when someone offers l\u2019amour blanc<\/em> at a restaurant.<\/p>\n

Un tue-l\u2019amour<\/em>
\nA turn-off<\/p>\n

La pomme d\u2019amour
\n<\/em>Candy apple<\/p>\n

L\u2019amour blanc<\/em>
\nThe grass carp<\/p>\n

Les poign\u00e9es d\u2019amour
\n<\/em>Love handles<\/p>\n

<\/a>Those Other Kinds of Love<\/h2>\n

Until now, we\u2019ve been focusing on romantic love, but just like in English, the word amour<\/em> can be used with other kinds of love. Many of these will probably be familiar to you already, but it\u2019s always good to know them.<\/p>\n

L\u2019amour platonique<\/em>
\nPlatonic love<\/p>\n

L\u2019amour familial<\/em>
\nFamilial love<\/p>\n

L\u2019amour-propre<\/em>
\nSelf respect (literally \u2018self love\u2019)<\/p>\n

<\/a>A Little French Perspective on Love and Languages<\/h2>\n

Our last point about love in French is more about culture than words. In English, when we talk about the \u201clanguage of love\u201d most people\u2019s minds conjure up an image of French before they even realize. So if French is the language of love in English, what is la langue de l\u2019amour<\/em> in French? Interestingly enough, it\u2019s Italian.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s right, whenever you hear the expression la langue de l\u2019amour<\/em> used by a native French speaker, you can be confident that they\u2019re talking about Italian.<\/p>\n

<\/a>Taking Your Love Words Further<\/h2>\n

And with that, you should have a firm grasp on what the French really mean when they talk about l\u2019amour<\/em> as well as several ways to describe your own love for something. That includes the romantic kind along with all the other kinds of love under the sun.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n

Learn French in context with Clozemaster<\/h2>\n

Clozemaster\u00a0<\/strong>has been designed to help you learn the language in context by filling in the gaps in authentic sentences. With features such as Grammar Challenges, Cloze-Listening, and Cloze-Reading, the app will let you emphasize all the competencies necessary to become fluent in French.<\/p>\n

Take your French to the next level. <\/strong>Click here to start practicing with real French sentences!<\/strong><\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

\"\"
\n