Quelque chose me manque
To say "I miss something" in French, use Quelque chose me manque.
This phrase is used to express sadness or a sense of longing because someone or something is no longer present. In common conversation, you may encounter the variation Tu me manques to say "I miss you," or the highly emphasized Tu me manques grave to say "I really miss you." To express a strong longing for a specific thing, you can say Ça me manque trop! which means "I miss it so much!"
How does it change in a sentence?
The French construction uses the indirect object pronoun me (to me). Consequently, the sentence Quelque chose me manque literally translates to "Something is missing to me."
What mistakes should you avoid?
Avoid saying Je manque quelque chose to express emotional longing. While this follows English word order, in French it actually means "I am lacking something" or "I am failing at something."
Did you know?
- Because the subject is actually the person or thing being missed, saying Je te manque does not mean 'I miss you', but rather 'You miss me'.
- The word manque was borrowed from the Italian word manco, which originally comes from the Latin word for 'maimed' or 'defective'.
- Using the word grave in Tu me manques grave is a modern slang trend where a word meaning 'serious' or 'grave' acts as an intensifier like 'totally'.
Examples in context
- Tu me manques beaucoup.I miss you a lot.
- Tu me manques depuis que tu es parti(e).I've missed you since you left.
- Tu me manques énormément.I miss you immensely.
- La plage me manque.I miss the beach.
- Les moments passés ensemble me manquent.I miss the moments we spent together.
- Le calme de la nature me manque.I miss the tranquility of nature.
- J'ai la nostalgie de ma ville natale.I have nostalgia for my hometown.
- J'ai la nostalgie de cette chanson.I have nostalgia for that song.
- J'ai la nostalgie de notre ancienne maison.I have nostalgia for our old house.
- Quelque chose me manque dans cette ville.I miss something in this city.
- Quelque chose me manque dans ma vie actuelle.I miss something in my current life.
- Je sens que quelque chose me manque.I feel like I am missing something.
Example conversation
Manon and Gabriel are sitting in a cafe talking about their lives.
- ManonJe ne suis pas très heureuse ici.I am not very happy here.
- GabrielPourquoi dis-tu ça, Manon ?Why do you say that, Manon?
- ManonQuelque chose me manque, je ne sais pas quoi.I miss something, I don't know what.
- GabrielPeut-être que tu as besoin de vacances.Maybe you need a vacation.
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries chose, manque, me, quelque, CC BY-SA 4.0.
