How To Say I Love You In French

French is the language of love using it with your beau can be incredibly romantic. But to avoid turning your "je t'aime" into a "je suis embarrassé," review these grammar, pronunciation, and vocabulary tips before professing your love. 

How To Say "I Love You in French"?

It's rather simple, and a lot of people know that sentence:

• "Je t'aime" - I am in love with you. It sounds like "je tem".

If you were to say "vous" to the person you are in love with (weird, but not impossible), it would be:

• "Je vous aime" with a strong liaison in Z: "je voo zem".

The Verb Aimer : To Love and to be in Love

This is tricky indeed. Aimer means to love and to be in love. So, what if you want to say you just "like" someone, not romantically? Then you'd have to add an adverb.

• Je t'aime bien = I like you
• Je t'aime beaucoup = I'm fond of you (still as a friend)

Now, be careful! If you were to omit the adverb, and just say: "je t'aime", you'd be saying "I am in love with you"... This could mean a lot of trouble.

We also use the verb "aimer" to say we like food, stuff... Here, no problem to use it without an adverb, the meaning is obvious (to a French person at least).

• J'aime la France. I like/love France.

So it's only when you use "aimer" with a person that you could be in trouble.

Note that we use "aimer" without an adverb with immediate family and pets. 

• J'aime ma fille. I love my daughter.
• Il aime son chien. He loves his dog.

How To Say To Be In Love in French ?

The expression "être en amour" is used in Canadian French, but not in France. We say "être amoureux / amoureuse de quelqu'un"

• Elle est amoureuse de Pierre = elle aime Pierre. She is in love with Pierre.

When you need to make it very clear that you are talking about love and not just like, then you'd need to use the full expression "être amoureux/amoureuse de".

• Il est amoureux de sa cousine. He is in love with his cousin.