Je te manque
The English phrase "you miss me" is expressed in French as Je te manque.
The phrase Je te manque is structured literally as 'I am missing to you', which is the reverse of the English logic.
What does it mean word for word?
Literally, Je te manque translates to "I am missing to you".
Which one should you use?
While Je te manque means "You miss me", Tu me manques is the much more common way to express the sentiment 'I miss you'.
How does it change in a sentence?
To say 'I miss you' (the English meaning), you must use Tu me manques, where Tu is the person being missed.
What mistakes should you avoid?
English speakers often mistakenly try to translate 'I miss you' directly as Je manque toi, which is grammatically incorrect in French.
Did you know?
- The root of manque comes from the Latin word mancus, which originally meant 'defective' or 'maimed'.
- In French, the word manquer is used for both 'missing a person' and 'missing a target', such as a shot in archery or a goal in football.
- If you want to say 'I missed the train', you use the same verb manquer found in Je te manque.
Examples in context
- Je te manquerais ?Would you miss me?This sentence is useful for asking if the person would miss you, using the form Je te manque.Tatoeba #13034660 by glossboss, translation #13034656 by glossboss
- Madame Dupont, vous me manquez énormément.Mrs. Dupont, I miss you immensely.
- Mathieu, tu me manques depuis notre dernière rencontre.Mathieu, I've missed you since our last meeting.
- Je te manque ?Do you miss me?
- Je sais que je te manque.I know that you miss me.
Example conversation
Chloé and Nathan are talking on the phone after a long trip.
- ChloéDis-moi, est-ce que je te manque ?Tell me, do you miss me?
- NathanOui, tu me manques beaucoup.Yes, I miss you a lot.
- ChloéJe sais que je te manque déjà.I know that you miss me already.
- NathanC'est vrai, j'ai hâte de te voir.It's true, I can't wait to see you.
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries je, manque, te, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
