What does it mean word for word?
te means you, extraño means I miss and mucho means a lot. Here mucho works as an adverb that adds intensity to the verb extrañar.
Which one should you use?
Te echo mucho de menos is a popular way to say the same thing in informal settings. Te extraño un montón sounds more heartfelt and stresses a huge longing. Siento mucho tu ausencia means I deeply feel your absence and has a touch of formality.
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Mexico people also say Me haces falta un montón, where un montón makes the feeling stronger.
How does it change in a sentence?
When you speak about a man or use the formal you, change te to lo: lo extraño mucho. For a woman, use la extraño mucho.
How do you pronounce it?
The IPA is /te eɡstɾaɲo mutʃo/. The middle of extraño has the sound /ɲ/, like the ny in canyon and mucho has the ch sound of church.
Did you know?
- In Spain, people often say te echo de menos, which literally translates to 'I throw you from less'.
- The word extraño is a cognate of the English words 'strange' and 'extraneous'.
- While you might use te extraño mucho to express longing, using the word extraño alone can also mean 'I find strange' or 'I consider weird'.
Examples in context
- Quiero darte un beso, te extraño mucho papá.I want to kiss you. I miss you so much, Dad.Here te extraño mucho is said to a father, followed by papá.Tatoeba #5650096 by cueyayotl, translation #9594087 by DJ_Saidez
- Te extraño mucho, mi amorI miss you so much, my love
- Te echo mucho de menos, hermanito.I miss you so much, little brother.
- Te extraño mucho, mi amor.I miss you so much, my love.
- Desde que te fuiste, te extraño mucho.Since you left, I miss you so much.
Example conversation
A video call between a long-distance couple.
- SofíaHola, Mateo. Te extraño mucho.Hi, Mateo. I miss you so much.
- MateoYo también te extraño mucho, Sofía.I miss you so much too, Sofía.
- Sofía¿Cuándo nos vamos a ver?When are we going to see each other?
- MateoMuy pronto, lo prometo.Very soon, I promise.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries extraño, mucho, te, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
