Ways to say it
| Vietnamese | IPA | Note |
|---|---|---|
| anh yêu em | [ʔajŋ̟˧˧ ʔiəw˧˧ ʔɛm˧˧] (Hà Nội, narrow) [ʔɛɲ˧˧ ʔiw˧˧ ʔɛm˧˧] (Huế, narrow) |
|
| e.g. | ||
| em yêu anh | [ʔɛm˧˧ ʔiəw˧˧ ʔajŋ̟˧˧] (Hà Nội, narrow) [ʔɛm˧˧ ʔiw˧˧ ʔɛɲ˧˧] (Huế, narrow) |
|
| tớ yêu cậu | [təː˧˦ ʔiəw˧˧ kəw˧˨ʔ] (Hà Nội, word by word, narrow) | |
| mình yêu bạn | [mïŋ˨˩ ʔiəw˧˧ ʔɓaːn˧˨ʔ] (Hà Nội, word by word, narrow) | impersonal |
| ngộ ái nị | [ŋo˧˨ʔ ʔaːj˧˦ ni˧˨ʔ] (Hà Nội, narrow) [ŋow˨˩ʔ ʔaːj˨˩˦ nɪj˨˩ʔ] (Huế, narrow) |
humorous, slang |
The phrase is used to affirm romantic feelings, but the specific words used change depending on the gender and relative age of the people involved. It can also be used in more casual or playful ways between friends or through slang.
Which one should you use?
The forms differ based on the relationship and social context. anh yêu em is used when a man is speaking to a woman, where anh refers to the male speaker (meaning older brother or husband) and em refers to the female listener. Conversely, em yêu anh is used when a woman is speaking to a man, where em refers to the female speaker and anh refers to the male listener. For peers or friends of a similar age, you can use the informal tớ yêu cậu. The form mình yêu bạn is an impersonal way to express the sentiment. Finally, ngộ ái nị is a humorous slang version.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
Standard romantic expressions like anh yêu em and em yêu anh are appropriate for partners. For friends of similar age, tớ yêu cậu is an informal option. ngộ ái nị is a slang term used for humorous effect.
How does it change in a sentence?
The phrase changes based on the gender and relative age of the speaker and listener. For example, in anh yêu em, anh refers to the male speaker and em refers to the female listener, while in em yêu anh, em refers to the female speaker and anh refers to the male listener.
When do people say it?
The phrase ngộ ái nị is a humorous, slang way to say "I love you" based on a playful imitation of Chinese-sounding phonetics.
Did you know?
- In the past, couples with children might have avoided 'I love you' style terms and instead called each other thầy em and đẻ em, meaning 'father of the little one' and 'mother of the little one'.
Examples in context
- Anh yêu em rất nhiều.I love you very much.This sentence shows how to add emphasis to the phrase anh yêu em.Tatoeba #8999759 by dotheduyet1999, translation #400410 by sysko
- Cô ấy ngại ngùng nên không thể nói "Em yêu anh".She is shy so she cannot say "I love you".This sentence illustrates a situation where someone is too shy to use the phrase em yêu anh.Tatoeba #4274425 by phuc, translation #3384262 by petersmr
- Em yêu anh!I love you.Tatoeba #405410 by sysko, translation #1434 by awael58
- Chào anh, em yêu anh nhiều lắm.Hello, I love you so much
- 1 more sentence on Tatoeba
Example conversation
A couple is having a romantic dinner.
- LanNam, anh có yêu em không?Nam, do you love me?
- NamTất nhiên là anh yêu em rồi.Of course I love you.
- LanEm hạnh phúc quá.I am so happy.
- NamAnh yêu em rất nhiều, Lan.I love you very much, Lan.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “I love you” translations and entries anh yêu em, em yêu anh, ngộ ái nị, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- IPA marked “word by word” joins the Wiktionary pronunciations of each word (tớ, yêu, cậu, mình, bạn) and can differ in connected speech.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries anh, cậu, em, tớ, yêu, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
