French word for love from

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Here are some FAQs about Romantic French Words

First, let’s see the typical translation for “I love you” in French.

How To Say “I Love” You In French?

The typical translation for “I love you” is :

1. Je t’aime (enunciated) – je t’aime (modern French pronunciation)
   I love you using “tu”.
2. Je vous aime (enunciated) – je vous aime (modern French pronunciation)
   I love you using “vous”. More about tu versus vous you in French

Like it is often the case in French, the pronunciation will change slightly depending on whether you are speaking in a very enunciated manner or using a casual French pronunciation.

Carful though. Saying je t’aime to a friend would be a big faux-pas ! je t’aime actually means ‘I am in love with you’.

I love You In English

In English, the verb “to love” is confusing because it expresses a variety of feelings. You can say “I love you” to someone you are in love with, but also to your parents, or a friend to express friendship.

It’s not the case in French.

I love You In French

je t’aime really translates as ‘I am in love with you’.
To keep it on a friendship level, you need to ADD an adverb: “je t’aime beaucoup, je t’aime bien…” I understand it’s counter intuitive but that’s what we do in French!

You could say je t’aime to a member of your very close family, such as your child, a sibling, or your parents, or even a pet.

How To Answer I Love You In French?

The typical answer to I love you in French is “moi aussi“: me too. It’s as simple as that.

Now, here are other phrases to express your love in French.

9 Ways To Say I Love You In French

Let’s see how to nuance I love you.

All the audio recordings below will feature modern spoken French pronunciation.

1. Je t’aime de tout mon coeur – I love you with all my heart
2. Je suis amoureux/amoureuse de toi – I’m in love with you
3. Je t’aime passionnément – I love you with passion
4. Je t’aime à la folie – I’m crazy about you
5. Tu es l’amour de ma vie – you are the love of my life
6. Tu es mon grand amour – you’re my biggest love
7. J’ai eu le coup de foudre pour toi – it was love at first sight
8. Je te kiffe – I love you / I fancy you using actually an Arabic term that is nowadays quite commonly used in modern spoken French, especially by younger people.
9. JTM – pronouncing it like the letters [jé té aim] – comes from texting in French and popular among young French people and teens.

13 Ways to Avoid I Love You in French

Sometimes, you have strong feelings about someone, but you’re note quite ready to drop the L bomb!

Although we’ll see below that it’s not as big a deal in France than it is other countries, you may need alternative to I love you in French.

1. Tu me plais (beaucoup / énormément) – I fancy you, I’m fond of you
2. J’en pince pour toi – I have a crush on you
3. Je suis fou/folle de toi – I’m crazy about you
4. Je suis dingue de toi – I’m crazy about you (a bit more colloquial)
5. Je suis épris(e) de toi – I’m taken by you (quite formal)
6. Tu m’as tapé dans l’oeil – you made quite an impression on me
7. Je suis morgane de toi – pretty poetic slang – I’m crazy about you. French singer Renaud made this expression quite popular.
8. Je ne peux pas vivre sans toi – I can’t live without you
9. Je brûle pour toi – I’m burning (with love) for you
10. Mon coeur s’enflamme en pensant à toi – my heart turns to flame when I think of you
11. Je t’adore – I adore you – very used, a very good alternative to not say “I love you” in French…
12. Je suis à toi – I’m yours. Why did I enunciate this one? Well, a “glided” pronunciation didn’t sound good to me here. So I record what I would say.
13. Tu es tout pour moi – you’re everything for me. Same remark.

You will find longer lists on the internet but watch out… expressions are not timeless… Saying “Je t’ai dans la peau” – ‘I got you under my skin’ for example is not an expression we use seriously today. One can use it to be over-dramatic, or as a joke.

That’s why you have to be careful with articles with lists of expressions: without the right context, you could be making a big faux pas!

I highly recommend learning French in context: my French audiobook learning method is illustrated with an ongoing novel, entirely recorded in French (featuring both enunciated and modern spoken French pronunciations), and follows the Parisian life of Mary and her friends from their teen years to their forties… It includes young romances and life-long love stories!

10 Ways To Say My Love In French

There are many cute love nicknames in French. Follow the link to my article with audio for 44 French love nicknames. Here are some French love names that work for both men and women.

1. Mon amour – my love
2. Mon ange – my angel
3. Mon trésor – my treasure
4. Mon coeur – my heart
5. Mon canard – my duck – yes, I know… wait, it gets worse…
6. Mon chou – my sweet bun (un chou à la crème is a cream filled puff pastry) – “mon petit chou” is also quite common
7. Mon chouchou – comes from “mon chou”
8. Doudou – no literal translation – it sounds very bad in English but we use it a lot in French! The origine is Creole French and it means sweety, darling…
9. Mon lapin – my rabbit
10. Mon poussin – my chick

Now, words have their limits. The best way to express you love in French may be in loving gestures, and thoughtful acts, such as being encouraging, being there for your loved one, checking up on him/her regularly, sending texts… of course, the occasional bouquet of flower is also appreciated!

The Crazy French Word For Love 🤪

The French word for love is L’amour.

But what is so weird about love in French is that it is masculine in the singular, and feminine in the plural !!!

• Un grand amour = a big love
• Des amours tumultueuses = difficult love

Love is definitely crazy!

Pronunciation of Love In French

You need to watch your pronunciation for “l’amour”, love in French. French students often mistake:

1. L’amour = la moor = love
2. La mort = la mor = death
3. L’humour = lu moor = humor
4. L’humeur = lu meur = mood

Quite a trap!

11 French Love Expressions

There are many expressions with the word love in French:

1. faire l’amour – to make love.
2. le grand amour – true love
3. un amour interdit – forbidden love
4. un premier amour – first love
5. un amour de jeunesse – first love, love when you where young
6. une histoire d’amour – a love story, a love affair
7. un philtre d’amour – love potion
8. filer le parfait amour – to be happily in love
9. l’amour-propre – self esteem
10. L’amour rend aveugle – love is bling
11. Vivre d’amour et d’eau fraîche – to live on love alone

30 French Love Words

1. L’amour – love
2. L’amitié – friendship
3. Je t’aime – I love you (using tu)
4. Je vous aime – I am in love with you (using vous)
5. Je l’aime – I am in love with him/her
6. Je suis amoureux / amoureuse de toi, lui, elle, vous… – I am in love with you, him, her, you
7. Tomber Amoureux / amoureuse – to fall in love (not tomber en amour which is used in Canadian French but not in France)
8. Est-ce que tu veux sortir avec moi – would you like to go out with me ?
9. Est-ce que tu veux (bien) m’épouser – would you marry me? The bien here is optional, and means “are you willing to marry me”, but it’s what we traditionally say.
10. To kiss – embrasser, s’embrasser. WATCH OUT !!! Not “baiser”… I’m sorry to be vulgar but you need to be aware that “un baiser” is fine, it’ a kiss, but “baiser” as a verb nowadays means to f..k.
11. A kiss – un baiser, un bisou – I wrote a whole article on the subject of French kisses.
12. Les fiançailles – engagement
13. Se fiancer – to get engaged
14. Un fiancé, une fiancée – someone you are engaged to. But sometimes used to say someone you are just dating.
15. Le mariage – marriage, wedding (only one R in French)
16. Se marier avec quelqu’un – to get married with someone
17. Épouser quelqu’un – to marry someone
18. Un marié – a groom
19. Une mariée – a bride
20. Un mari / un époux – a husband
    Watch out between un marié, une mariée, un mari…
21. Une femme (pronounced “fam”) / une épouse – a wife
22. Un/ une partenaire – a partner. Mostly used for gay couples in French.
23. Un compagnon / une compagne – a partner as used in British English : someone you live with but you are not necessarily married to.
24. Un amoureux / une amoureuse – a sweetheart
25. Un petit-ami/ un petit-copain – a boyfriend
26. Une petite-amie / une petite-copine – a girlfriend
27. Watch out! “un amant” means a lover, as in someone you have sexual relations with or you are cheating on your spouse with. So not to be used lightly in French.
28. Mon chéri, ma chérie, mon amour… there are plenty of French terms of endearments: I suggest you read (and listen) to my article about the French love nicknames with audio.
29. Joyeuse Saint Valentin – happy Valentine’s day.
30. Tu veux être mon valentin / ma valentine ? Would you be my valentine?

I Like You ≠ I Love You In French

Now let’s see how to differentiate friendship from romantic love.

In both cases, we are going to use the verb “aimer”.

1. J’aime Paul – I am in love with Paul (love)
2. J’aime beaucoup Paul –  I like Paul a lot (friendship)

The difference between like and love? The adverb! Add an adverb to the verb “aimer” and you’re staying in the friend zone!

To say you like or love someone as a friend, say:

1. Je t’aime bien
2. Je t’aime beaucoup
3. Je t’aime énormément
4. Je t’aime de tout mon coeur (with all my heart)

Many French love songs and movies have a dialogue along these lines:

• Est-ce que tu m’aimes ? 
  Are you in love with me ?
• Euh…. je t’aime beaucoup… 
  Well…I like you a lot…

Or to quote the song from Zazie, “Chanson d’ami” from the album “Made in Love”:
Je ne t’aime pas : je t’aime bien 
I am not in love with you: I like you

Outch!

How To Translate To Be In Love In French?

If you really wanted to be clear and express you are in love with someone, you could use the expression: Je suis amoureux/amoureuse de toi – I’m in love with you  (careful, not “être en amour” which they use in Canada, but not in France).

J’aime beaucoup Paul, mais je ne suis pas amoureuse de lui.
I like Paul a lot, but I’m not in love with him.

It’s a bit redundant, but it’s very clear.

Saying I love You In France – Not Such A Big Deal

In many American sitcoms, saying I love you seems to be a very, very big deal. A milestone in the relationship.

It doesn’t seem to be quite strong a deal in France. Of course, saying I love you is never something you say lightly, but it doesn’t seem to be such a big deal. According to France 2, 8% of French people would be ready to say “I love you” on the first day!! Yet, France 2 also says many French feel comfortable saying “I love you” within two months of the relationship (Frenchmen: 88 days, Frenchwomen 134 days!)

What About Dating In France ?

Well, this was a big shock to me when I arrived in the US. I had no idea what “dating” meant.

I understood of course a man and a woman could be interested in each other in a romantic way, let me reassure you.

But I was not aware that accepting to go out to dinner with a man alone gave the signal that I was possibly romantically interested in him.

Nor did I know about this first date, second date and third date business.

In France, it’s very common for a girl to go out to dinner with a male friend. Even for a married woman to go out with a male friend who is single.

I wrote a whole article about dating in France and the culture around it. I invite you to follow the link to read it.

Valentine’s Day In France

Valentine’s day in France is only for people who are romantically in love. In the US, it’s common for kids to give valentines to their friends, their teachers… It’s not the case in France.

To know more about Valentine Day in France, I invite you to read my article.

I’ll end this long article with a video of a love poem said by my daughter.

S/he Loves Me, S/he Loves Me Not In French 🌼

Listen to my daughter Leyla when she was 4 years old telling the French version of “s/he loves me, s/he loves me not”, a child’s game where you pick up the petals of a flower (usually a daisy).

The French game goes:
Il/elle m’aime un peu, beaucoup, passionnément, à la folie… pas du tout!
S/he loves me a bit, a lot, with passion, s/he’s crazy about me… s/he doesn’t love me at all!

French Love Poem

Ma main est une fleur
Mes doigts sont les cinq pétales
Dis moi jolie petite fleur
Est-ce que ma maman
M’aime de tout son coeur ?
Elle m’aime un peu, beaucoup,
Passionnément, à la folie,
Pas du tout.
Pas du tout ??
Vilaine petite fleur !
Je sais que ma maman
M’aime de tout son coeur !

Note: Leyla says: “une main est une fleur” instead of “ma main”… little mistake.
Then she says “mes doigts Y (for “ils”) sont les cinq pétales” – that’s common spoken French for you!

English Translation of the French Love Poem

My hand is a flower
My fingers are the five petals
Tell me pretty flower
Does my Mom love me with all her heart ?
She loves me a little, a lot,
Passionately, madly,
Not at all.
Not at all ??
Naughty little flower!
I know my mom
Loves me with all her heart!

Awwwwwhhhh. my heart melts each time I watch this video… Moi aussi je t’aime de tout mon coeur ma Leylounette chérie !

Voilà, I hope this lesson clarified things about how to say I love you in French.

I post exclusive mini lessons, tips, pictures and more daily on my Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest pages – so join me there!

If you liked this article, I may also like:

1. French Women Don’t Date – the French Dating System Explained
2. Flirting in French
3. Valentine’s day in France
4. All About French Kissing
5. French love nicknames (with audio)

A room with a view
But a house she can’t call her own
Dinner’s burning on the stove
It’s a far cry from home

The kids going wild
They won’t give her the time of day
She’s trying hard, but she’s just got
No clue what the’re saying

French word for love
The only thing that springs to mind
All the time keeps dreaming of
Romantic ways to spend the night
To feel alright

Quartier Latin
She’s all dressed up to move around
Handsome strangers everywhere
Her first night in town

A blue haze of smoke
In a placе they call Chez Maxim’s
The man of hеr dreams

She sees him again when the blue haze has gone
In front of the class that she attends
Whoever thought he’d be teaching French
At the Sorbonne

How to Format Lyrics:

• Type out all lyrics, even repeating song parts like the chorus
• Lyrics should be broken down into individual lines
• Use section headers above different song parts like [Verse], [Chorus], etc.
• Use italics (<i>lyric</i>) and bold (<b>lyric</b>) to distinguish between different vocalists in the same song part
• If you don’t understand a lyric, use [?]

To learn more, check out our transcription guide or visit our transcribers forum

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French Love Language: L’Amour et l’Amitié

Express yourself in the language of love

If French is the language of love, what better language is there with which to express your love? Here are some key French words and phrases related to love, friendship, and special occasions. Click on the link to hear the word or phrase pronounced.

* Same pronunciation for masculine and feminine version.

French Terms of Endearment (Termes d’Affection)

French has all kinds of interesting terms of endearment, including a rather odd assortment of barnyard animals. Check out this list of French terms of endearment to use with your loved ones (both romantic and familial). For the most part, these all mean something along the lines of «sweetie,» «darling,» or «poppet,» so we’ve provided the literal translations as well as a few notes (in parentheses).

My love	mon amour
My angel	mon ange
My baby	mon bébé
My beautiful (informal)	ma belle
My dear	mon cher, ma chère
My dearie	mon chéri, ma chérie
My cutie	mon mignon
My Half	ma moitié
My little guy / girl	mon petit / ma petite
My doll	ma poupée
My heart	mon cœur
My little girl (informal, old-fashioned)	ma fifille
My big guy / girl	mon grand / ma grande
My Jesus (when talking to a child)	mon jésus
My treasure	mon trésor
My (fruit) core (when talking to a child)	mon trognon

Ma mie literally «my female friend,» but used to mean «my dear/love.»

This is a somewhat old-fashioned term contracted from mon amie > m’amie > ma mie. Note that mie also refers to the soft part of bread — the opposite of the crust.

Affectionate French Terms Related to Animals

Learn some playful French word for your loved ones.

Love Words Related to Food

My cabbage, my pastry (informal)	mon chou
My favorite, blue-eyed boy/girl, pet* (informal)	mon chouchou
My dropping (also refers to a small, round goat cheese)	ma crotte
My barley sugar	mon sucre d’orge

*as in «teacher’s pet»  

Notes About Modifiers

• The word petit (little) can be added in front of most of these: mon petit chou, ma petite chatte, etc.
• The phrase en sucre (made of sugar) can be added to the end of some: mon trésor en sucre, mon cœur en sucre, etc.

Note that the possessive adjectives mon and ma (my) have to agree with the gender of the term of endearment—not your own gender nor necessarily that of the person you’re talking to/about. Generally speaking, masculine terms of endearment can be used for men and women, while feminine terms of endearment can only be used for women.

Perfect Your Pronunciation: How to Say «I Love You» in French

They say that French is the language of love, so you’d better know how to say I love you! These step-by-step instructions will teach you how to say I love you in French.

Here’s How

1. Find the person you love.
2. Say his or her name.
3. Say je t’aime:
   • j in je is pronounced [zh] like the g in mirage
   • e is pronounced like the oo in good
   • t’aime is pronounced [tem] to rhyme with them.
4. Optional: Follow with «my darling»:
   • To a woman = ma chérie, pronounced [ma shay ree].
   • To a man = mon chéri, pronounced [mo(n) shay ree]. The (n) is nasal.
   • You can also choose a different French term of endearment
5. Optional: To respond to someone who says «I love you,» say Moi aussi, je t’aime (I love you too).
   • moi is pronounced «mwa.»
   • aussi is pronounced «oh see.»
6. You can listen to sound files of these terms on my page of French love language

What You Need

• A few minutes of practice
• A romantic location
• Your beloved
• (optional) candles, flowers, bonbons, soft music, an engagement ring…

English Expressions Using «Love»

The English word «love» is found in many different expressions. Here’s how to translate these phrases into French.

love affair (literal)	une liaison
love affair (figurative)	une passion
love at first sight	le coup de foudre
love child	un enfant d’amour un enfant illégitime un enfant naturel
love feast	une agape un banquet
love game (tennis)	un jeu blanc
love handles	poignées d’amour
love-hate relationship	un rapport amour-haine
love-in-a-mist (plant)	la nigelle de Damas
love-knot	les lacs d’amour
love letter	une lettre d’amour un billet-doux
love-lies-bleeding (plant)	amarante queue-de-renard
love life	la vie amoureuse ses amours
love match	un mariage d’amour
love nest	un nid d’amour un nid d’amoureux
love of one’s life	le grand amour
love potion	un philtre d’amour
love scene	une scène d’amour
love seat	une causeuse
love story	une histoire d’amour
love (in tennis)	zéro, rien
love token	un gage d’amour
love triangle	un triangle amoureux
loved ones	êtres chers
lovestruck	éperdument amoureux
brotherly love	amour fraternel
casual love affair	un amour de rencontre
courtly love	amour courtois
declaration of love	une déclaration d’amour
first love	son premier amour
free love	amour libre
in love (with)	amoureux (de)
labor of love	une tâche accomplie pour le plaisir
madly in love	fou d’amour
my love (term of endearment)	mon amour
physical love	amour physique
platonic love	amour platonique
puppy love	amour juvénile
true love	le grand amour
for the love of God	pour l’amour de Dieu
He loves me, he loves me not	Il m’aime un peu, beaucoup, passionnément, à la folie, pas du tout
How’s your love life?	Comment vont tes amours ?
I’d love to!	Avec plaisir ! Volontiers !
It can’t be had for love nor money.	C’est introuvable. On ne peut se le procurer à aucun prix.
Lucky at cards, unlucky in love	Heureux au jeu, malheureux en amour
not for love nor money I wouldn’t do it for love nor money.	pour rien au monde Je ne le ferais pour rien au monde.
Someone up there loves me.	C’est mon jour de veine.
There’s no love lost between them.	Entre eux, ce n’est pas le grand amour. Ils ne peuvent pas se sentir.
to do something for the love of it	faire qqchose pour l’amour de l’art
to do something out of love for	faire qqchose par l’amour pour
to do something with loving care	faire qqchose avec amour
to fall in love (with)	tomber amoureux (de)
to live on love alone	vivre / se nourrir d’amour et d’eau fraîche
to love	aimer
to make love	faire l’amour