I Love You, Te Amo, Habibi, Wō Ài Nī

The power of expressing love can move mountains or destroy lives.  But what if they were expressed in a different language? The answer may surprise you.

JAPANESE:

There is no exact comparison to I love you in Japanese. Instead in Japanese culture, people use like (suki  -好き) or affection (aijō -愛情.)

Watashi wa, anata o aishiteimasu -わたしは、あなたを愛しています means something very close to I love you but it’s not as commonly used as it English counterpart.

The Japanese prefer to use context driven expressions of affection like I appreciate you (anata ni kansha suru -あなたに感謝する) and I support you (watashi wa anata ōen shimasu -私はあなたを応援します.)

FRENCH:

The French love to say I love you. People jump all in a lot sooner than most other cultures.

Je t’aime or I love you is heard more often than it’s English counterpart. They use beautiful expressions that go beyond “I love you.” Tu me rends gaga – you make me stupid or je t’ai dans la peau – I have you in the skin.

ARABIC:

In most Arabic speaking countries, like and love are the same word in the Arabic language and its dialects such as Lebanese or the Levantine in general, Gulf, or Egyptian dialects.

Habibi or habibiti when addressing a lady means love or my love. Ahibak or Ahibik could mean I like you or I love you.

SPANISH:

Te amo or te quiero? In Spanish the first means I love you and the latter means I want you or I desire you.

Just as passionate, me flechó or her/his arrow hit the mark and cad vez que la/o veo me mata or every time I see him/her, he/she kills me!


How do you express love in your native language? Share it with our readers below in the comments section. If you liked this post about LOVE, then hit the ‘like’ button and share it with your friends.

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