我爱你
wǒ ài nǐ
我爱你 (wǒ ài nǐ) is the Chinese way to say "I love you".
我爱你 is the most commonly used phrase to express "I love you" in Chinese and is used to affirm romantic feelings. For expressing deep and intense love, you might use 我深深地爱着你, while 我对你有着深深的感情 emphasizes the emotional attachment and affection you have for someone.
Meaning: affirmation of romantic feeling (phrase)
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase 我爱你 is composed of 我 (I/me), 爱 (love) and 你 (you).
Which one should you use?
While 我爱你 expresses deep romantic love, 我喜欢你 (wǒ xǐhuān nǐ) is a more common way to express romantic interest or "liking" someone, often used in the early stages of a relationship. For an informal way to express developing feelings, interest or attraction, you can use 我对你有感觉.
How does it change in a sentence?
The phrase follows a standard Subject-Verb-Object structure and does not change its form based on the gender of the speaker or the listener.
How do you pronounce it?
wǒ ài nǐ
Did you know?
- The number '520' is often used in digital messaging as a shorthand for 'I love you' because the pronunciation of 'five two zero' in Chinese sounds similar to 'I love you'.
- In traditional Chinese culture, many people express love through actions like peeling fruit for someone rather than saying 我爱你.
- The character 爱 (ài) used in 我爱你 was traditionally written with a 'heart' radical 心 in the center, though many modern simplified versions have omitted it.
Examples in context
- 汤没我爱你。Tom doesn't love you as much as I love you.This sentence uses 我爱你 to compare how much someone loves another person.Tatoeba #13943785 by jan_OkulaJu, translation #4391193 by CK
- 我说我爱你时是认真的。I was serious when I said I love you.This sentence uses 我爱你 to show that one's expression of love was sincere.Tatoeba #5551019 by verdastelo9604, translation #5573284 by n1ls
- “我爱你”用法语怎么讲？How do you say "I love you" in French?This sentence uses 我爱你 to ask for the French translation of the phrase.Tatoeba #8715888 by crescat, translation #2417967 by CK
- 我对你有着深深的感情，这些年来我们一起经历了许多事情，你一直是我生命中最重要的人。I have deep feelings for you. Over the years, we have gone through many things together, and you have always been the most important person in my life.
- 我喜欢你，无论发生什么，我都希望我们可以一直在一起。I like you, and no matter what happens, I hope we can be together.
- 17 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
A romantic dinner at a quiet restaurant.
- 俊杰 Junjie佳怡，我爱你。Jiāyí, wǒ ài nǐ.Jiayi, I love you.
- 佳怡 Jiayi我也爱你，俊杰。Wǒ yě ài nǐ, Jùnjié.I love you too, Junjie.
- 俊杰 Junjie你会永远陪着我吗？Nǐ huì yǒngyuǎn péizhe wǒ ma?Will you stay with me forever?
- 佳怡 Jiayi会的，我会一直在。Huì de, wǒ huì yīzhí zài.I will, I will always be here.
Sources
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
