How To Say 'I Love You' In French (Essential Guide)
Written byAdrien Renault- Read time5 mins
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Looking for the most endearing ways to express how much you love someone in French?
You’ve come to the right place – this is where you’ll find them.
We know that love can sometimes be a sensitive topic, particularly if you’re telling you love someone for the first time in French – and you’re a beginner. So, there’s nothing better than being prepared.
If you’re studying a French course, you might already be aware of the standard way to say those three little English words ‘I love you’ in French, which is je t’aime.
But stick around because we’ve got plenty more ways to help you express your love to those close to you.
What are the most common ways to say ‘I love you’ in French?
There are many ways to say ‘I love you’ in French, some of the most common of which include:
| Le Francais | English |
|---|---|
| Je t’aime | I love you |
| Je t’adore | I adore you |
| Tu me complètes | You complete me |
| Je t’aime de tout mon coeur | I love you with all my heart |
| Je t’aimerai toujours | I’ll love you forever |
| Je t’aime tellement | I love you so much |
| Je t’aime plus chaque jour | I love you more each day |
| Je suis tombé amoureux de toi | I’ve fallen in love with you |
How to pluralise je t’aime for addressing many people
Say you want to say you love all your family members and you’re addressing various people – for this you’ll need to pluralise the phrase je t’aime by using the word vous instead of te.
Here’s our example:
Je vous aime tous tellement. Merci de me soutenir.
Notice where the plural phrase vous appears in the sentence – in this case it’s in the same place as the word te.
Using tu me completès and je t’adore to emphasise your love for your partner
To really emphasise how much you love someone in French, the phrases tu me completès and je t’adore are common variations of the expression je t’aime.
Tu me completès translates to English as ‘you complete me’, where as je t’adore means ‘I adore you’.
These two expressions of love are typically used between partners and are not appropriate for family members.
How gender affects certain expressions of love in French
Depending on who is speaking – (a man or a woman) – the way we express certain sentences related to love can differ.
One example is the phrase je suis tombé amoureux de toi (‘I’ve fallen in love with you. In this case, this phrase has been spoken by a man.
We can tell because the sentence uses the masculine adjective amoureux and the participle tombé also takes the masculine form.
It follows that if a woman were to say the phrase ‘I’ve fallen in love with you’, they should use the feminine form. The adjective amoureux would change to the feminine word amoureuse, and the participle tombé would also take the feminine form tombée.
To simplify this, take a look at how a woman would say ‘I’ve fallen in love with you’ in French:
Je suis tombée amoureuse de toi.
More French vocabulary related to love
To round out your knowledge of how to say ‘I love you’ in French, here’s some more vocabulary that you’ll hear used related to love:
| Le Francais | English |
|---|---|
| Le grand amour | True love |
| L’amour de ma vie | The love of my life |
| Le premier amour | First love |
| L’amour-propre | Self-respect/self-love |
| Amante | Lover |
Common French idioms related to love to be aware of
We’ve included this list of common French idioms that you might hear a lot in French-speaking countries, in movies, in podcasts or spoken by French natives.
One thing to bear in mind before you take a look at these idioms, is that they cannot be interpreted with a literal translation. They tend to have metaphorical meanings and use parallel images to emphasise their definition.
Take a look:
| French Idiom | Literal Translation | Actual Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| ^Etre fleur bleue | To be a blue flower | To be sentimental |
| Poser un lapin | To put a rabbit | To get stood up |
| Se prendre un r^ateau | To take a rake | To be rejected |
| Avoir un coup de foudre | To have a strike of lightning | To fall in love at first sight |
| Se faire larguer | To lose a guy | To get dumped |
Reinforce your knowledge of French phrases for ‘I love you’ with two tips
So, you’ve got the knowledge and we’ll leave you to practice using these French phrases for ‘I love you’.
We’ve got two quick tips before we go that will help you remember the key expressions included in this list:
- Watching French movies with a love theme can also help you reinforce your knowledge. Sometimes, seeing the image on screen can help you understand the context in which these French phrases for ‘I love you’.
- When you’ve gained more confidence, listening to French love songs on YouTube channels can be a great help that will significantly reinforce your knowledge. Listen carefully and see which phrases you recognise. Then consider the contexts in which they’re used in the song, which will help you identify the meaning behind the expressions.
You’ll get there.
Remember to keep practicing and before you know it, you’ll confidently be able to tell that special someone how much you love them in French.
Got any other French phrases that mean ‘I love you’ that we have missed out?
Share them below.
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