How to say “I love you” in French?

Do you know how to say “I love you” in French?

This article is going to show you how to say “I love you” in French, how to call your lover and make you discover a few French expressions of
love as well as tell you more about the way French people celebrate Valentine’s Day.

Contents
1 How to say “I love you” in French?
1.1 Je t’aime
1.2 Je suis amoureux de toi
2 How to call your lover in French?
3 French expressions of love
3.1 Coup de foudre
3.2 Fou amoureux
3.3 Tomber amoureux
4 How do French people celebrate Valentine’s Day?
5 Over to you

How to say “I love you” in French?

You probably already heard “I love you” in French movies and songs. But here is a reminder if you forgot how to say it :

Je t’aime
“Je t’aime”, literally “I love you” is the most common and simple way to express your love in French. But there are naturally many other French
phrases you can use to express love.
“Je t’aime” is used in many songs and movies.

Je suis amoureux de toi

“I am in love with you”.
While “je t’aime” can also be used to express love for friends and family members, you should only use “je suis amoureux de toi” with your lover.
If you are a woman, you need to use the female form “je suis amoureuse de toi” instead.

How to call your lover in French?

Now that you know how to say I love you in French, it’s time to learn how to call your lover in French.
Since there is an awful lot of ways to do that, I am not going to make an exhaustive list. Here are three common sweet words in French.
Mon amour : my love
Mon chéri/ ma chérie : my dear (although sweetie would better reflect the way French people use it)
Mon ange : my angel

You could say “je t’aime mon amour” or “je t’aime mon ange”. (I love you my love, I love you my angel).

French expressions of love

These are idiomatic expressions French people use to express their love. As usual on French Together, these are commonly used French
expressions, so you won’t look awkward if you use them.

Coup de foudre
Hier j’ai rencontré quelqu’un, j’ai eu un véritable coup de foudre
Yesterday I met someone, I had a real bolt of lightning
I warned you, love is a powerful feeling. So powerful that French persons think it fells like a bolt of lightning.
Incidentally, “coup de foudre” sometimes refers to a real “bolt of lightning”, and not to the powerful feeling that is love.
So if you ever hear someone tell you he/she had a bolt of lightning in Paris, it most likely means he/she experienced love at first sight.

Fou amoureux
This is the French counterpart of “madly in love”.
Jean est fou amoureux de Marie
Jean is madly in love with Marie

Tomber amoureux
This French love phrase is one more proof that French and English share a lot when it comes to love.
This literally means “to fall in love”.

How do French people celebrate Valentine’s Day?

It all started in Middle-Age England.
Every year, on February 15, men and women gathered for “la loterie de l’amour”, the love lottery.
During this event, couples were randomly paired.
Men who didn’t like their match simply chose another one.
Women who were left alone made a huge bonfire where they burnt the name and memories of all the men who rejected them.
This tradition has long been lost.
Nowadays French people celebrate Valentine’s Day in a pretty standard way.
You often take your lover to a nice restaurant where you enjoy a delicious meal in a romantic atmosphere, you walk along the river Seine hand in
hand, share chocolates and wish each other “une joyeuse saint Valentin”.
Or you go to Pont Des Arts, a bridge covered by love locks in Paris and tell a few French love quotes to your lover.
Whatever you decide to do, make sure not to use the wrong French words or your whole romantic evening could suddenly become awkward.