kocham cię
/ˈkɔ.xam t͡ɕɛ/
In Polish, "i love you" is kocham cię.
kocham cię is used to express an affirmation of romantic feeling. While kocham specifically refers to deep, romantic love, you should use lubię cię if you simply want to say you like someone as a friend. You can also use terms of endearment alongside this phrase, such as kochanie (darling), to say Kocham cię, kochanie to a partner or Kocham cię, moja miłości to say "I love you, my love".
Meaning: affirmation of romantic feeling (phrase)
What does it mean word for word?
kocham is the first-person singular present tense of the verb kochać, meaning "i love" and cię is the pronoun for "you".
How does it change in a sentence?
The phrase uses the informal singular pronoun cię, which is used when speaking to one person you are close to.
When do people say it?
When someone says kocham cię to you, a common way to respond is ja ciebie też or simply ja też, which means "I love you too" or "me too".
Did you know?
- While 'I love you' is 'kocham cię', if you want to say 'I love my dog' or 'I love chocolate', you must use the verb uwielbiać or bardzo lubić instead. Using kochać for inanimate objects or pets can sound poetically dramatic rather than natural.
- In older Polish literature, one might encounter the form miłuję cię instead of kocham cię. While kocham is the standard modern way, miłować carries a more archaic, solemn, and epic weight.
- In Polish, the word for 'love' as a noun is miłość, which shares the same root as the word miły, meaning 'nice' or 'pleasant'.
Examples in context
- Kocham cię, mój pająku.I love you, my spider.This example shows how to use the phrase with an unusual pet name.Tatoeba #9463273 by Shounen, translation #9463275 by Shounen
- Kocham cię z całego serca.I love you with all my heart.This example demonstrates expressing love with the whole heart.Tatoeba #852882 by zipangu, translation #68788 by CK
- Kocham Cię – Ja Ciebie też."I love you." "I love you, too."This example shows a way to respond to the phrase 'kocham cię'.Tatoeba #4108311 by konrad509, translation #1655606 by gleki
- 16 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Katarzyna and Tomasz are having a quiet dinner at home.
- KatarzynaKocham cię, Tomaszu.I love you, Tomasz.
- TomaszJa też cię kocham, Katarzyno.I love you too, Katarzyna.
- KatarzynaTo takie miłe usłyszeć.It is so nice to hear that.
- TomaszZasługujesz na to.You deserve it.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “i love you” translations and entries kocham cię, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
