me alegro de verte
/me aleɡɾo de beɾte/from spelling rules
The English phrase 'I am happy to see you' is expressed in Spanish as me alegro de verte.
This phrase is used to express pleasure upon meeting or encountering someone. You might also use the variation me alegra verte, which means 'seeing you makes me happy'.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase me alegro de verte literally translates to 'I rejoice myself of seeing you' because it uses the reflexive verb alegrarse.
Which one should you use?
While estoy feliz de verte is grammatically possible, me alegro de verte is the much more natural and common way to express this specific sentiment in Spanish. The variation me alegra verte changes the structure slightly so that 'seeing you' acts as the subject that causes the happiness.
Is it said differently in some regions?
In certain Latin American countries, you may hear the informal expressions ¡Qué chévere verte! or ¡Qué bueno verte! to mean 'How nice to see you!'
How do you pronounce it?
/me aleɡɾo de beɾte/
Did you know?
- In Spain, the greeting me alegro de verte is often paired with two kisses, one on each cheek, regardless of whether the speaker is male or female.
- In some contexts, saying estoy feliz instead of me alegro can sound like the speaker has won the lottery or achieved a life-long dream rather than just being glad to see a friend.
- The word de in this phrase comes from the Latin 'dē', a preposition that originally described the movement of moving down from a place.
Examples in context
- Me alegro de verte otra vez.I am happy to see you again.This sentence is useful for expressing that you are happy to see someone again using me alegro de verte.Tatoeba #2062865 by lazarus1907, translation #1130981 by cntrational
- Estoy muy feliz de verteI am very happy to see you
- Me alegra muchísimo verteIt makes me extremely happy to see you
- Estoy súper contento(a) de verteI am super glad to see you
- Me alegro de verte por fin.I am happy to see you at last.
- Me alegro de verte tan bien.I am happy to see you doing so well.
Example conversation
María and Daniel run into each other at a cafe.
- María¡Hola Daniel! Me alegro de verte.Hi Daniel! I am happy to see you.
- DanielYo también, María. ¿Cómo estás?Me too, María. How are you?
- MaríaMuy bien, gracias.Very well, thanks.
- DanielQué bueno escuchar eso.That is good to hear.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries de, me, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
