nous t'aimons, maman
The English phrase "we love you, mom" is translated into French as nous t'aimons, maman.
This expression is used by two or more children to express affection toward their mother.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of the subject nous (we), the object pronoun t’ (you), the verb aimons (love) and the vocative maman (mom).
Which one should you use?
If only one child is speaking, you should use je t'aime, maman instead of nous t'aimons, maman.
How does it change in a sentence?
While the standard phrase uses the familiar tu form, if children were to use the formal vous to address their mother, the object pronoun would change from t’ to vous, resulting in nous vous aimons, maman.
Did you know?
- The word maman is an example of 'baby talk' that was eventually adopted into the formal French language. It likely originated from the sounds a nursing infant makes, similar to the Latin word 'mamma'.
- The use of je to mean 'we' was so strongly associated with peasants that the playwright Molière used it to mock characters in his works.
Examples in context
- Nous t'aimons, maman, pour tout ce que tu fais.We love you, mom, for everything you do.
- On veut juste te dire : nous t'aimons, maman.We just want to tell you: we love you, mom.
Example conversation
Chloé and Hugo are giving a card to their mother.
- ChloéRegarde maman, c'est pour toi !Look mom, this is for you!
- HugoOh, c'est adorable ! Merci !Oh, this is adorable! Thank you!
- ChloéNous t'aimons, maman.We love you, mom.
- HugoMoi aussi, je vous aime mes chéris.I love you too, my darlings.
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries maman, nous, CC BY-SA 4.0.
