One word for love in french

amour; tendresse; affection; chéri; trésor; bien-aimé; amoureux; amant; chérie; mignonne; bien-aimée.

What is the old French word for love?

From Middle French amour, from Old French amor, from Latin amor.

What is the meaning of Cheri?

adjective. darling [adjective] much loved.

What is another word for my love?

You might call someone my love as a term of endearment, much like my dear or my darling. Someone who is well loved is often described as beloved. As a verb, there are a few synonyms that are sometimes used for love, such as adore, admire, cherish, and even treasure.

What does ma chérie amour mean?

Translation of «amour, ma chérie» in English. love, my darling.

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There are other ways in French to show your love for someone than saying I love you – in French “je t’aime”. Why not use a French love nickname with your loved one?

This free French lesson – like many on French Today’s blog – features audio recordings. Click on the link next to the headphones to hear the French pronunciation.

Note that most of these French love names can be modified by petit + boyfriend nickname, or petite + girlfriend nickname, making it even sweeter to talk to your loved one.

We very often add mon petit + masculine love nickname or ma petite + feminine love term to talk to a child.

I often call Leyla, our daughter mon petit coeur and Olivier calls her ma petite puce (my little flea !!! – no kidding, it’s a very popular love nickname in France).

Some of these French love nicknames look really bad in English: Doudou, ma biche 🤣🤣🤣 However they are very common in French!

10 French Love Nicknames

Here is a list of French love nicknames which can be used for a man or a woman. Note that these terms are also used to lovingly call a child, boy or girl.

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… Another origine is that before, kids were told they were born in a cabbage (“un chou” in French).
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

Even though you’d be talking to a girl or a woman, you would still use the French possessive adjective “mon” with all these love terms because the love term is masculine (un amour, un ange, un trésor…).

I call my husband “Doudou”. I know it sounds really bad in English but it’s a very, very common love nickname in France. Être doux means to be soft to the touch.

Un doudou is often how a kid calls his special blankie or sleep toy / teddy…

11 French Boyfriend Nicknames

All these French terms of endearment mean my darling more or less and are use to talk to romantic boyfriends. Some may be used with a child as well – I noted the ones that can’t.

1. Mon chat – my cat (do not say the final t)
2. Mon chéri – my darling
3. Mon beau – my beautiful one
4. Mon choupinet – no translation – but comes from “mon chou”
5. Mon gros – my fat one (I wouldn’t use this term of endearment with a child… or an adult actually… I don’t really care for it but it is used)
6. Loulou – no translation but it probably comes from “loup”
7. Mon loup – my wolf (I wouldn’t use this French term of endearment with a child)
8. Mon ours – my bear (I wouldn’t use this French love term with a child)
9. Mon nounours – my teddy bear (I wouldn’t use this French love name with a child)
10. Minou – kitty
11. Roudoudou – no translation although it was the name of a hard caramel candy… (I wouldn’t use this French love nickname with a child)

To learn truly useful French vocabulary in context, check out my downloadable French audiobooks, featuring different speeds of recording and enunciation, and focussing on today’s modern glided pronunciation, exclusively on sale on French Today. Spoiler: there are a couple of romances!

23 French Nicknames For Your Girlfriend

All these French terms of endearment are used to talk to French women or girls and mean my darling more or less but – some have specific translations which are sooooo funny!!

Can you imagine sweet calling your wife “my flea” or “my shrimp” in English? Give it a try and let me know how it turns out 🤣

1. Ma belle – my beautiful one
2. Ma beauté – my beauty
3. Ma biche, ma bichette – my doe – yeah, I know it looks bad in English!
4. Mon biquet, ma biquette – my goat kid
5. Ma caille – my quail
6. Ma chatte – my cat (be careful with this one as well : it means pussy, with exactly the same double meanings as it has in English)
7. Ma chérie – my darling
8. Ma choute – no translation – again comes from “mon chou”
9. Choupinette – no translation – again comes from “mon chou”
10. Ma cocotte – no translation but it has to do with hen
11. Ma colombe – my dove
12. Ma crevette – my shrimp (no, not the worse one)
13. Ma gazelle – my gazelle
14. Lolotte – no translation
15. Ma mie (very very old fashion – I wouldn’t use that French love term with a child)
16. Minette – kitty
17. Moumoune – no translation (I wouldn’t use that French love name with a child)
18. Ma poule, ma poulette – my hen
19. Poupounette – no translation
20. Ma Puce – my flea (yes, I know, it’s embarrassing) – also “Pupuce”… Very common love nickname in France… Actually that’s how Olivier call our daughter Leyla!!
21. Ma sardine – my sardine (no comment)
22. Ma souris – my mouse
23. Mon sucre d’orge – my little candy

Olivier is quite conservative I guess… He calls me Ma chérie or Mon amour. I wouldn’t like to be called Ma chatte but it’s very common in France – so is Ma Puce.

Now you are ready to surprise your loved one with some cute French love nicknames for Valentine’s Day.

And you? How do you call your loved ones? I’d love to know: let me know in the comments!

If you know more common French love terms, please add them in the comments and I will add them to this list (they need to be PC though).

Joyeuse Saint Valentin à tous !

More posts on this topic:

1. The many ways to say I love you in French
2. 💕 Flirting in French – Vocabulary & Tips

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Love is one of those great universal things. It’s something that all of us experience in some way, no matter what country or culture we come from, or what language we speak. 

Interestingly, though, the way different cultures express their love can vary widely. So, how do the French talk and think about love?

Let’s look at how to say “I love you” and “love” in French, and some French love facts that may surprise you!

The French for “I love you” is Je t’aime (informal) or je vous aime (formal or plural.) In most cases, “je t’aime” is used just like “I love you” in English.

If you want to say “I love you
so much”, be careful which modifier you use (more on that in the next
section).  “I love you so much” in
French is either Je t’aime tellement or Je t’aime tant.

Je t’aime tellement is the one I hear most often more often  – in movies and TV shows, I mean, not said to
me by a string of prétendants (suitors). 

If you want to get more creative when it comes to declaring your love for someone in French, this article includes a great list of options, although I would caution against using Je t’adore if you’re declaring your love to a French person. French people seem to find it funny and over-the-top, at least when a foreigner says it.

In fact, the French often portray Anglo-Saxons, especially Americans, as saying J’adore about anything and anyone…and before I realized this, I have to admit that, in my case, they weren’t necessarily wrong! But then, am I wrong to find beauty and joy everywhere? 

This song by eccentric French music star Philippe Katerine is what I think goes through the mind of a French person who hears someone say j’adore.

In a previous article, French Together’s Benjamin suggested this as another good déclaration d’amour (declaration of love): Je suis amoureux/amoureuse de toi (I’m in love with you). It’s a phrase you often hear on French shows and movies, and no wonder — as in English, it lets someone share their feelings and also makes them vulnerable in a way.

How to say “love” in French

The French word for “love” is l’amour. It’s used for romantic love, familial love or even a love of activities, things, and ideas.

But
that’s where the simplicity ends.

Originally, amour  was a feminine noun, but over the course of
time, that’s changed.  If you ask many
modern-day French speakers, amour is one of only three words in the French language that
changes gender when it’s pluralized, from masculine when it’s singular, to feminine
when it’s plural.

So,
you could see something like:

Entre eux c’est l’amour fou.

They’re madly in love.

Il me semble que Jean a déjà eu plusieurs grandes amours dans sa vie.

It seems to me that Jean has experienced true love quite a lot already.

But
this isn’t officially correct. Prestigious French grammar
institutions, including the Académie Française (the organization that determines
the official rules for the French language), consider amour a masculine
noun in both its singular and plural forms.

Still,
don’t be surprised to see some French people making amour feminine when
it’s plural – old habits, like first loves, die hard. And it could also be that
what you’re seeing or reading comes from a time when the word was officially
feminine in its plural form – or maybe someone is trying to convey older French
language, for example in a historical fiction novel.

Unless
you’re deliberately trying to be old-fashioned, though, remember to keep amour
masculine in both its singular and plural forms.

How
to say “to love” in French

Okay,
so, like many relationships, that got complicated!  Luckily, “to love” in French is aimer,
a regular -er verb. Like amour, it can be used for all kinds
of love: romantic, familial, etc. Now, that’s something to love!

Here are the conjugations of some of the most common tenses of aimer:

Present	imparfait	Passé composé	Future
j’aime	J’aimais	J’ai aimé	J’aimerai
Tu aimes	Tu aimais	Tu as aimé	Tu aimeras
Il/elle/on aime	Il/elle/on aimait	Il/elle/on a aimé	Il/elle/on aimera
Nous aimons	Nous aimions	Nous avons aimé	Nous aimerons
Vous aimez	Vous aimiez	Vous avez aimé	Vous aimerez
Ils/elles aiment	Ils/elles aimaient	Ils/elles ont aimé	Ils/elles aimeront

Conditional	Subjunctive	Imperative
J’aimerais	Que j’aime	Aime
Tu aimerais	Que tu aimes	Aimons
Il/elle/on aimerait	Qu’il/elle/on aime	Aimez
Nous aimerions	Que nous aimions
Vous aimeriez	Que vous aimiez
Ils/elles aimeraient	Qu’ils/elles aiment

There
are several love-related words that are directly derived from aimer.
These include:

aimé(e) – loved/beloved. Example: Jacques est aimé de tous. (Jacques is loved by
everyone/Everyone loves Jacques)

bien-aimé(e) – beloved, well-beloved. Example: Nous sommes ici pour fêter notre
bien- aimée Françoise. (We’re here to celebrate our beloved Françoise.)

How to say “I like you” in
French

Interestingly, there is no
verb that specifically means “like” in French. Usually, you’ll see aimer,
or maybe the more formal apprécier.

Paradoxically, you can tell also someone you like but don’t love them by adding bien.

Yes, that’s right – if a French person says Je t’aime bien, that doesn’t mean the love you a lot, but that they simply like you.

British comedian Paul Taylor has
a great theory about aimer bien thattruly made me laugh when I
first heard it. For him, it’s a way for the French to maintain dignity in case
they see that the person they’re trying to declare their love to doesn’t feel
the same way!  You can watch his
delightful video about romance in France here (the aimer bien part is at the 2:10 minute mark).

But what if you don’t want to let someone down easy? Can you still use aimer bien? I’ve heard French people use it to show that they really appreciate a good friend. But more commonly, if you want to tell someone you like them in a non-romantic way in French, the best way to express this is probably to simply say why you like them.

For example: Tu es un bon ami (You’re a good friend) or Je m’amuse toujours quand on est ensemble. (I always have fun when we’re together.)

You may be wondering if adding
any adverb to je t’aime makes the statement less strong. As this thread points out, although that can
be true with certain ones, like bien and beaucoup, for many
others, that’s not the case at all.

We’ve seen that tellement
and tant really do make je t’aime stronger. Other adverbs, like passionnément,
are also sincere. And then there are some cases where it just depends on the
context. That probably sounds frustrating, but I can tell you that, even as a
foreigner, I think it works. Often, you’ll hear these declarations in your own
personal life or in a book, movie, story, show, etc., so you’ll already know
something about the feelings of the person who’s saying it, after all.

If
you’re worried that your declaration of love might be misunderstood due to
adverbs, don’t be – just keep things simple and say Je t’aime.

How to say “I love something” in
French

If I’m eating a really delicious cookie, in English – especially American English – I could just let out all of my feelings, all of the explosive joy and sensory delight that I’m experiencing in that moment: “I love this cookie!” or “This is the best cookie I’ve ever eaten,” and so on.

But the French find extreme displays of emotion unnecessary and insincere. It would be perfectly okay to talk about loving cookies in general (J’aime les biscuits) But for a single cookie? Jamais! Instead, a French person would keep some verbal distance by simply complementing the cookie – for example, Il est vraiment bon, ce biscuit (This cookie is really good).

How about activities? In that
case,  j’aime is fine, and will be
understood as “like” or “really enjoy”. 

If you want to convey that a particular activity is your life’s passion, use something like passionné(e) par.  For example, Je suis passionnée par la lecture et Paul est passionné par le sport. (I love to read, Paul loves sports.) But the expression is even more effective when passionné(e) is a noun, like so: Je suis une passionnée de la lecture, Paul est un passionné du sport. (Reading is my passion, Paul’s passion is sports.) But if you can play it down, really, aimer and a non-specific object or activity is fine.

Can you say you love your pet in
French?

I have heard people say J’aime
mon chien, J’aime mon chat, or J’aime just about any other
kind of pet they might have, quite often in France.  Grammatically and culturally, using j’aime
with your pet is fine, with two exceptions.

The first is, do not say J’aime ma chatte. Even if the person you’re talking to knows that you have a female cat, somewhere in the back of their mind, they’ll be giggling, because it sounds like you’re talking about something else – une chatte also means “pussy” (a vulgar word for the vulva).

So just say J’aime mon chat – it’s probably not important that the person you’re talking to knows your cat’s gender anyway. Or if it is, you might be able to get away with it by adding your cat’s name: J’aime ma chatte Chloë. (I love my cat Chloë). But even then, confusion might ensue.

The second time it may be a bit
complicated to say you love your pet is when you’re talking to someone who
doesn’t get it – and in France, that may happen a lot.

Many French people grew up in rural environments where animals had jobs and weren’t meant to be fawned over. These people will often scoff over “city folks” who bring their pets regularly to the vet. 

That being said, not all French people feel this way, by far. In fact, a recent survey found that 60% of French people think that sharing their life with a pet can be emotionally fulfilling. They just may not be as open about it as we are in some other cultures.

And there will always be people
who don’t get it, no matter what their background. My American father, for
example, was just as baffled about my including my cat’s name on our Christmas
card, as my French mother-in-law was. 
So, don’t be afraid to proudly say J’aime mon animal de compagnie!
(I love my pet!) And if you feel moved and want to tell your pet Je t’aime,
go for it!  In fact, why not stop reading
and do it right now?

As for a species or type of
animal, it’s normal to refer to them as a collective and use aimer.  For example, Noëlle aime les poissons et Marie aime
les baleines. (Noelle
likes fish and Marie likes whales.).

Some
common French love vocabulary

There
are many, many ways to talk about love, but these words come up frequently in
French.:

faire l’amour – to make love. This is one of those phrases that a lot of non-French speakers know, too! If you’re looking for more vulgar ways to express this, check out our list of French swear words.

le grand amour – true love. Example: Entre Pierre et Céline, c’est le grand amour. (Pierre and Celine are truly in love./Pierre is Céline’s true love./Céline is Pierre’s true love.)

l’amour de ma vie – The love of my life.

fou amoureux/euse (de) – to be madly in love (with). Example: Elle est fou amoureuse de Johnny. (She’s madly in love with Johnny.)

fou/folle de toi/de lui/d’elle, etc. – crazy about you/him/her, etc. Example: Je suis fou de toi. (I’m crazy about you.)

dingue de toi/lde ui/d’elle, etc. – mad about you/him/her, etc. For fans of the Paul Reiser and Helen Hunt sitcom ‘Mad About You,’ this is the title in French.

un amour impossible – forbidden love. Example: Luna est amoureuse de Michel, le mari de sa sœur bien-aimée ; hélas, c’est un amour impossible. (Luna is in love with Michel, her beloved sister’s husband; alas, it’s a forbidden love.)

le/un premier amour – first love. This can refer to the experience or a person. Note that the term stays the same, whether the subject is masculine or feminine. Examples: 1. Le premier amour est un évènement majeur dans la vie. (Your first love is a major moment in a person’s life.) 2. Bette était son premier amour. (Bette was her first love.)

un amour de jeunesse – one’s childhood love/first love. Of course, if you didn’t fall in love until you were older, I wouldn’t use this expression. In that case, just use mon premier amour

amant(e) – a lover. Example: Emma Bovary avait deux amants. (Emma Bovary had two lovers.)

filer le parfait amour – to be living the perfect love story/to be happily in love.

une histoire d’amour – a love story OR a love affair! Be careful with this one – although usually the context makes it clear. Examples: 1. Et si c’était vrai… est l’histoire d’amour entre un homme et une femme qui est peut-être un fantôme. (If Only It Were True is a love story between a man and a woman who might be a ghost.) 2. Elle a eu une histoire d’amour avec le boucher. (She had an affair with the butcher.)

tomber amoureux/euse (de) – to fall in love (with). Note that the verb tomber is conjugated with être in the past tense, which means it has to agree with the subject. Example: Elle est tombée amoureuse de Stéphane. (She fell in love with Stéphane.)

le coup de foudre/avoir un coup de foudre – love at first sight/to fall in love at first sight. Unlike its English equivalent, this expression in French is delightfully descriptive: un coup de foudre can also mean “a lightning strike”! Example: Je l’ai vu au musée, au milieu d’une foule, et là, c’était le coup de foudre. (I saw him at the museum, in the middle of a crowd — it was love at first sight.)

un philtre d’amour – a love potion. Okay, so this isn’t necessarily something that pertains to all relationships, but you never know….

la vie amoureuse/sentimentale – one’s love life.

l’amour-propre – self-respect. Example: Non, je ne ferai pas semblant d’être amoureux de cette femme pour prendre son argent ! Elle est méchante et écœurante ! J’ai de l’amour-propre, quand même. (No, I won’t pretend to be in love with this woman in order to get her money! She’s mean and repulsive! I’ve got some self-respect, after all.

déclarer sa flamme – to declare your love for someone. I love this expression, because it makes it seem like the love inside of you is like a flame. So poetic! You can use it as-is when talking about declaring your love to someone, or you can add an object pronoun to specify that you’re declaring your love to someone. Examples: 1. Aujourd’hui je vois Thérèse et je déclare ma flamme ! (Today when I see Thérèse, I’ll declare my love!) 2. Aujourd’hui je vois Thérèse et je lui déclare ma flamme ! (Today when I see Therese, I’ll declare my love to her.)

bisous/gros bisous – Love/Lots of Love/Kisses. This is a very common way to end emails, letters, and even text messages with family or close friends.

bisou – kiss/Love. This is the equivalent of the above, but for the person you’re in love with/in a relationship with. The idea is that while you’d faire la bise (give cheek kisses) with other people you’re close to in your life, with the person you’re in love with, you’d exchange a single kiss on the lips.

jtm – a common way to abbreviate Je t’aime in text messages. If you say
the letters the way
they’re pronounced in the French alphabet, it sounds like this phrase. Of
course, if you choose to text someone “jtm”, just be sure they’re the
sort of person who’d appreciate it.

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Longing for more French love words?  Here’s a good love-, romance-, and friendship -related vocabulary list:  Note, though, that while some people (especially of an older generation) do refer to their female loved one(s) as ma chatte, it probably will sound vulgar or make someone snicker, since, as I mentioned previously, la chatte also means “pussy”, so avoid using that one.

Common
French phrases and expressions about love

Here
are some common French phrases and sayings about love.

There are many others, of course, from lines of poetry, to funny retorts in plays and movies. But these are the generic sayings that have become so much a part of the language that they’re almost a cliché. You’ll find them – or puns or references based on them – all over French pop culture and in daily life.

L’amour rend aveugle – Love is blind. If we have the same expression in English, it’s because some version of this idea has been around since antiquity. But, as in English, this expression is omnipresent in French.

On ne badine pas avec l’amour – Don’t trifle with love/Love is serious business. This expression comes from the eponymous 1834 play by Alfred de Musset and became a common saying in French. You can read the play for free here, if you’re interested.

vivre d’amour et d’eau fraîche – to live on love alone (literally: to live on love and cool water). This can be a good or bad thing, depending on how the speaker feels.

un peu, beaucoup, à la folie – He/She loves me, he/she loves me not… – Whereas in English, this game involves plucking petals of a flower and alternating “He/She loves me” and “He/She loves me not” with each one, the French version actually contains a lot more options; the phrase is a shorter version of Il/Elle m’aime un peu, beaucoup, passionnément, à la folie, pas du tout (He/She loves me a little, a lot, passionately, madly, not at all.). One of my favorite French romcoms has a title that’s a play on words of this famous phrase and the first one on this list: Un peu, beaucoup, aveuglement (A little, a lot, blindly).

Six things you may not know about love in France

For many of us, the French are considered the most romantic people
in the world. But when you learn about how the French see many aspects of
romantic love, you quickly realize that they aren’t romantic in the way most
people expect. Here are six things that might surprise you about love in
France:

1. The French aren’t into big romantic gestures. 

One of the biggest cultural differences between French and many
other cultures (including my own native culture, American), is that the French
aren’t into big emotional displays. They tend to see them as either
fake, stupid, or outright lies — at least outside of fiction.

When it comes to romantic gestures, this exchange from the
film Gazon maudit sums up that mentality: A man selling roses (a common
sight in France) approaches a couple at a table. The man tells the flower
seller “Non merci, on a déjà baisé.” (No thanks, we’ve already fucked.).

Most French people are more low-key about expressing their emotions – including when they’re in love. They may not take you up to the Eiffel Tower and propose to you in front of a huge crowd of people, but they will quietly praise you, play a subtle game of seduction, and want to spend real, quality moments together.  That’s not to say you’ll never get a surprising or pricey gift or an invitation to dinner or a weekend getaway or some such thing, but if you do, it won’t be done in a loud, flashy way.

Which way of showing love is better? Or maybe a middle ground is
the ideal? That’s up to each individual. But I will say from experience that if
you need elaborate, overt displays and affirmations of affection and love, the
typical French person may not be your ideal match.

2. Valentine’s Day isn’t a major French holiday. 

Lots of people I know dream of visiting Paris on Valentine’s Day. It’s true that there are lots of romantic things to do here – but then again, you can do all of those things pretty much any other day of the year, as well.

Although Valentine’s Day is a holiday on the religious and
cultural calendar in France, most French people don’t celebrate it in any kind
of elaborate way. Yes, some couples may go to dinner, especially if they’re  dating. But boxes of chocolates, cards
(including valentines exchanged among schoolkids), and enormous bouquets are
far from the norm among French people.

One thing that is a French Valentine’s Day custom though,
is Parisians declaring
their love on the electronic community announcement panels that are found throughout
the city. A few weeks before Valentine’s Day, Parisians (and anyone in Paris at
the time) can submit short messages to those they love. Many of these will be
selected to be posted citywide on the announcement panels. In recent years,
they’ve also been posted on the City of Paris’s official website. The messages can
be anonymous or specifically addressed to and for someone. They can be an
opportunity to déclarer sa flamme, or simply to show appreciation of
someone you’re already in a relationship with.

To me, even this custom has a French aspect to it: It’s romantic,
but not in-your-face. The words on the panels are printed and change often.
There’s no noise or interference with anyone’s life involved, and because full
names aren’t used, the people involved still maintain their privacy.

3. The French aren’t the most sexually active people in the world.

The French don’t have the most sex out of any country, as many
surveys show. In this recent one by Durex, France
didn’t even crack the top 9! 

Of course, there are many factors that might make surveys
inaccurate or inapplicable. Maybe most French people and their partners don’t
use Durex condoms, or those who do have more important things to do than
participating in a survey. But from experience, I can say that while sex is
often talked and joked about here, I don’t know any French people who can say
they faire l’amour every day.

4. In France, love doesn’t necessarily lead to marriage.

In many cultures, it’s a natural evolution: A couple falls in
love, dates for a while, and then gets engaged and married. Or they may date
for a long time, then decide they want kids and get married in order to be accepted
as parents by society or their family. In France, none of that is necessarily
true.

Many people do get married here, but unless they’re from a
traditional family or subculture, there’s no pressure by French society at
large to do this (inheritance laws aside). Many French people I know, from
the old woman I rented a room from when I was a student in Paris back in the
day, to 20- and 30-something friends, live with the person they love, but
aren’t married.  This is true even if
they have kids. Those who are married might have even waited to do so after
having kids.

According to a 2016 survey of French couples
living in the same household, 73% were married, 20% were unmarried, and 7% were
PACS’ed (The PACS (Pacte
Civile de Solidarité) is the rough equivalent of a civil union in the United States).

All of these couples may have children without judgment by the state or society in general. That’s one of the things I love most about life in France. Regardless of your relationship status the co-parent of your child, you’re not shunned because you don’t have a ring on your finger.

5. Not every Frenchman has a mistress.

Whether you’re a fan of classic French literature or you’ve just
heard the rumors, you may think that cheating on your spouse – especially men
cheating on their wives – is de rigueur in France.

There are some cultural habits that would back this up. For example, the phrase un cinq à sept, which refers to the person you sleep with at the end of the workday (5 to 7pm), when your spouse thinks you’re still at work. Or the many French movies where infidelity seems par for the course, and is often forgiven, especially if men are the culprits. 

Despite all of this, French isn’t the most unfaithful nationality in the world. That “honor” goes to Thailand! Still, the rate of extramarital affairs in France is high; it ranks 5^th out of the list of the most unfaithful countries, with a rate of 43% of surveyed people having had an affair.

But romantic, monogamous love isn’t necessarily dead. The study
found that 63% of French people believe you can only truly love one person. And
in another poll, 67% of the
French people surveyed believe in a lifelong love, and 76% are happy in their
current relationship.

If you’re in love with these surprising facts, here’s yet another survey that will
reveal even more about love in France.

French love songs

Like most languages and cultures, French boasts countless love
songs. In fact, a recent poll asked French people to say which love songs are
their favorite. Here’s the list of the
French’s ten favorite love songs.

Interestingly, the French’s favorite love song is one by Edith
Piaf, but not her most famous international hit La vie en rose. Instead,
it’s the moving Hymne à l’amour. You can listen to it (and read the
lyrics) here.

And if ten French love songs isn’t enough, here’s a
hundred more!

I’d love to list the French’s other favorite love-themed things,
from movies, to books, to poetry, but unfortunately, no one seems to have done
a poll of those. So, why not discover some lovely French works about love by
doing an online search?

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Do you have a favorite French love song, poem, movie, book, or something else? Share the love in the comments!

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