Ik hou van jou
The Dutch phrase for "I love you" is Ik hou van jou.
Ik hou van jou is used to affirm deep, romantic or very strong emotional love. It is specifically reserved for these intense feelings and is not used to express the casual liking of friends.
Meaning: affirmation of romantic feeling (phrase)
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase literally translates to "I hold of you".
Which one should you use?
While Ik hou van jou expresses romantic love, the phrase Ik vind je lief is used to express a more platonic or "sweet" affection.
How does it change in a sentence?
In casual speech, the stressed pronoun jou is often replaced by the unstressed je, resulting in Ik hou van je. You can also modify the phrase to refer to others: replace jou with hem for "I love him", haar for "I love her" or hen/hun for "I love them".
Did you know?
- The word van in this phrase is a direct descendant of the Proto-Indo-European root h₂pó, which meant 'off' or 'away from'.
- While an English speaker might say 'I love you' to a pet or a child, using Ik hou van jou for a pet can sound strangely intense or overly dramatic to a Dutch person.
- In the Netherlands and Flanders, saying Ik hou van jou is considered a heavy emotional commitment. It is far less common to hear it in casual dating than the English 'I love you'.
Examples in context
- Ik hou van jou.I love you.This is a simple example of the phrase being used.Tatoeba #7550778 by MarijnKp, translation #1434 by awael58
- Frankrijk, ik hou van jou!France, I love you!This example shows the phrase being used to address a country.Tatoeba #7496478 by MarijnKp, translation #5276566 by Ricardo14
- Ik hou van jou. Ik bel je later.I love you. I'll call you later.This example shows the phrase used alongside a statement about calling someone later.Tatoeba #6039016 by Mandalay, translation #6033859 by OsoHombre
- Ik hou heel veel van je.I love you very much.
- Ik heb ontzettend veel liefde voor jou.I have an immense love for you.
- Ik hou van mijn moeder.I love my mother.
- Ik hou heel veel van mijn broer/zus.I love my brother/sister very much.
- Lieve opa/oma, ik hou ontzettend veel van jou.Dear grandpa/grandma, I love you immensely.
- 9 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
A couple is having a romantic dinner at home.
- LisaIk hou van jou, Lucas.I love you, Lucas.
- LucasIk hou ook van jou, Lisa.I love you too, Lisa.
- LisaBen je echt gelukkig?Are you really happy?
- LucasJa, heel erg gelukkig.Yes, very happy.
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries hou, ik, jou, van, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
