te extraño
/te eɡstɾaɲo/from spelling rules
In Spanish, the phrase "I miss you" can be expressed as te extraño or te echo de menos.
Meaning: I miss you (phrase)
Ways to say it
| Spanish | IPA |
|---|---|
| te extraño | /te eɡstɾaɲo/ (from spelling rules) |
| te echo de menos | /te ˌet͡ʃo de ˈmenos/ |
Both te extraño and te echo de menos are used to express that you miss someone. If you want to emphasize the feeling by saying "I miss you a lot," you can use te extraño un chorro in certain regions or te echo de menos un montón in others.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase te echo de menos literally translates to "I throw you of less."
Which one should you use?
The choice between these two forms often depends on geography. te extraño is the more common way to say "I miss you" in Latin American Spanish, while te echo de menos is more common in Spain.
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Mexico, the informal phrase Te extraño un chorro is used to mean "I miss you a lot." In Spain, the phrase Te echo de menos un montón is used to mean "I miss you a lot."
How do you pronounce it?
/te eɡstɾaɲo/
Did you know?
- Writing hecho de menos with an 'h' is a common spelling error in Spanish because echo comes from 'to throw' and hecho comes from 'to do'.
- While te extraño is standard in Latin America, using it in Spain can sometimes sound overly dramatic or poetic.
- The word extraño in te extraño is a cognate of the English words 'strange' and 'extraneous'.
Examples in context
- Te echo de menos.I miss you.Tatoeba #454574 by Shishir, translation #1308 by brauliobezerra
- Tom, te echo de menos.I miss you, Tom.Tatoeba #2011041 by Shishir, translation #1887572 by CK
- Te extraño cuando no estás acá.I miss you when you're not here.Tatoeba #1646718 by hayastan, translation #1329779 by CK
- Le extraño, señora Martínez.I miss you, Mrs. Martínez.
- ¡Hola amiga! Te extraño mucho.Hi, friend! I miss you a lot.
- Te echo de menos, hermano.I miss you, brother.
- 14 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
María and Mateo are talking on a video call.
- MaríaTe extraño mucho, Mateo.I miss you a lot, Mateo.
- MateoYo también te extraño, María.I miss you too, María.
- María¿Cuándo vas a venir a visitarme?When are you going to come visit me?
- MateoPronto estaré contigo.I will be with you soon.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “I miss you” translations and entries te echo de menos, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries de, echo, extraño, menos, te, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
