There doesn't seem to be a way to indicate that one only likes a person with whom one is friends, rather than loves them. Is there a way to indicate this while still referring to the friend as 'tu'?
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17Tutoiement has nothing to do with it; note that a similar difference exists between "je vous aime" and "je vous aime bien".– Brennan VincentAug 17, 2011 at 20:17
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1Voting to close as general reference (any bilingual dictionary will give you the answer).– Gilles 'SO nous est hostile'Aug 17, 2011 at 20:26
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So can someone clarify this, is there a distinction between I love you (romantic) and I like you (friends) that is in english also in French? If there is such a distinction (and it is not inferred just based on the context and the way it is said) what are the phrases used. Please also indicate where you are from (is this French, Canadian, ...)– AliAug 17, 2011 at 20:43
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8I think it is a good question, as it is more a matter of cultural conventions not a strictly linguistic discussion.– AliAug 17, 2011 at 20:44
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11Peut-être les Français ne savent pas aimer à moitié.– Andrew VitSep 2, 2011 at 7:22
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12 Answers
Je t'aime bien (literally: I love you much).
To change “love” to “like”, you need to modify it with an adverb.
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5We don't often use this one with people of the other sex like Pierre explains. It assumes a friendship relation but it's a little more subtle. We often use "Je t'aime bien" to imply we don't love ("je t'aime") the other person.– LouhikeAug 17, 2011 at 20:44
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8Indeed, "Je t'aime bien" is also a way of saying "but I'll nevere, ever, love you". To say "I love you", you'd rather use "Je ne te hais point."– JoubarcAug 18, 2011 at 7:23
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5@Joubarc What a citation! Indeed you can say that, but as a speaker of the language who currently lives in the country I would never use something like this orally.– NeikosAug 18, 2011 at 8:27
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11Me neiher, but if the person you're trying to seduce knowns her/his classics, you may get bonus points. I guess I'm more on the "Tu ne me laisses pas indifférent." end of the spectrum than on the "Je te kiffe grave!!" one.– JoubarcAug 18, 2011 at 8:36
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2My understanding of the adverb in "je t'aime bien" might be something like "I like you well enough". Sep 2, 2011 at 7:26
Je t'apprécie
Je t'aime bien like Andrew Lewis suggests will work fine too, but it is safer to use Je t'apprécie with same sex persons.
In fact, to like is often translated as apprécier in French.
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13It can often be considered as a bit too formal in a spoken conversation though.– raphinkAug 17, 2011 at 20:20
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3@Raphink: it's what I personnaly use. I use Tu me plais or Je t'aime bien with new girl friends ;) I'm not sure it's what the OP is asking for– user22Aug 17, 2011 at 20:21
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2I guess you mean girlfriends, rather than girl friends, or else you might get in trouble with your special one ;-)– raphinkAug 17, 2011 at 20:24
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@Raphink: yes exactly ;)– user22Aug 17, 2011 at 20:25
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Chez nous on dit souvent "je t'apprécie beaucoup", mais de façon surprenante, on dit rarement "je t'apprécie" tout court. Ce n'est pas formel, et c'est rarement ambigü, exactement comme "I like you". Parfois, c'est aussi une façon de dire, en réponse à une avance, "I like you but sorry I don't love you".– ShlubluAug 30, 2011 at 10:54
"I like you" can be translated by:
Je t'aime bien. ( I like you )
Je te trouve sympa. ( I think you're nice )
Je t'adore. (I like you a lot. (More used among girls))
T'es sympa. ( You're nice )
Je t'aime beaucoup. (I like you a lot, (and let's stay friend :P) )
T'es un super pote. ( You're a super nice friend )
On s'amuse bien ensemble. (We have fun together)
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I don't think you're supposed to abbreviate "tu es" to "t'es"....I could be wrong? Jul 24, 2012 at 19:25
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19In spoken French, "t'es" is as common as "you're" in English. (I am French.)– oliJul 24, 2012 at 22:42
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"On s'amuse bien ensemble" sound like what I would say to a sex friend. This can be useful too.– MadlozozApr 12, 2015 at 8:06
Generally, one would use:
Je t'aime bien.
However, if you want to be more formal, then use rather the following:
Je t'apprécie.
If you speak French with a foreign accent, then I suggest you use the second sentence as it sounds less naïve than the first one, which could be directly taken from the first lesson of any learning course.
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You are right, the second is less naive, more serious in a certain way. We would rather say "je t'apprécie beaucoup", but "je t'apprécie" (especially with a foreign accent) would be perfectly understood and appreciated.– ShlubluSep 2, 2011 at 8:04
More casually, "Tu es sympa"
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Well, not that it is completely unrelated, but it would rather translate "You are nice/cool". Mar 28, 2022 at 16:41
You can even say "Je t'aime", but you need non-verbal communication like intonation and gestures, or some context or background with the other person that can avoid any misunderstanding.
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Indeed. Something like "mais oui, je t'aime" express friendship. Maybe in a humorous way.– MadlozozApr 12, 2015 at 8:07
Another good expression Tu me plais.
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4I think that's not the idea of the question. "Tu me plais" hides an attraction to the other person.– martiallAug 17, 2011 at 20:21
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17"Tu me plais" means I like you in a romantic way. I would never say that to a colleague or friend (or to anyone really).– raphinkAug 17, 2011 at 20:22
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Omg, sorry for misreading the question. You are absolutely right Aug 17, 2011 at 20:25
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7I do not agree with the other comments, "tu me plais" can be used to espressed some kind of connivance as well ("tu me plais" meaning "I like you twisted way of thinking"). Aug 18, 2011 at 18:07
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2@Sylvain Peyronnet In that case we say something like "tu me plais bien, toi, tu as de bonnes idées". This is absolutely not ambiguous, you are right. Nevertheless the "tu me plais" (tout court) is actually more than ambiguous. It means "I find you attractive".– ShlubluSep 2, 2011 at 7:58
Friends usually address themselves with "Je t'adore" or also you could make périphrases like "J’apprécie beaucoup être [en ta compagnie|avec toi]".
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1M'vy utilises-tu vraiment je t'adore si souvent? Moi je trouverais ça vraiment bizarre.– user22Aug 17, 2011 at 20:19
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25Apart from teenage girls saying that to their best friends, I can't imagine saying that to any of my friends...– raphinkAug 17, 2011 at 20:21
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1"Je t'adore" is not really use between friends. "Je t'apprécie" and "Je t'aime bien" are the more common in my point of view.– martiallAug 17, 2011 at 20:22
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1Indeed, the tone is important when you use this expression! A way to tone it down is to use the form "Je t'adore, toi !" or "J't'adore trop" (even more familiar).– PhiLhoAug 25, 2011 at 14:05
As other said, you are dealing with an untranslatable term. Languages support cultures, and different cultures build different social relations.
In French, there's no equivalent to like, just like there's no equivalent to vous in English. Of course one may use different language register in English, as well as one may express a whole shade of relational feelings in French. But it will be reflected in more complex constructions that you can't sum up in a one to one locution translation.
Using tu is already a way to express a more intimate relation. If you want to express that you like to spend time with a friend, you may say "je suis heureux qu’on soit ami(e)s, tu sais?". But as said, you will need to be more specific on what you want to express.
Edit by PamCam: this is off topic, but English you actually corresponds to French vous as can be seen from the verb it takes i.e. you are and not you is; therefore it is more appropriate to say that standard English does not have a form that corresponds to the French form tu. Some dialects, though, allow expressions such as you is or yous, but that is a different matter altogether.
Addition by user 168676: I agree with PamCam and can mention additional information corroborating his/her contentions. In ancient times the English language has had the equivalent of a second person singular; the subject pronoun was "thou" in which we find the t of "tu" in french and a phonetically close sound in the German "du" which is modern German "tu"; the second person of the verb "to be" was "art" in which again we find the t of the second person singular of the German "sein" which is "bist" (verb "to be" in German); the English language is a Germanic language, that being due to the early migrations towards Britain of a germanic people known as the Angles. It might be added that the second person singular has persisted in English poetry for a long time and that it is found in some English dialects still spoken in England; we get a substantial exposure to one of those dialects in the contemporary (and once controversial) literary work of D.H. Lawrence, Lady Chatterley's lover.
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This is completely inaccurate. Languages reproduce equivalent meanings not equivalent words. And the trick is knowing when to use aimer/aimer bien and like/love in English. It should not be explained away by saying something exists. The concept of love and friendship exist in both French and Anglo cultures.– LambieMar 24, 2022 at 15:31
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Of course the broad concept of love exists in French and Anglo culture. And in both you can find advanced concept like philia and agape borrowed from Ancient Greek. But that is not the point here. The question was more like "is there a direct (obvious) equivalent expressions that transpose in French 'I love you' vs ’I like you.'" The closest thing I could come with would be "Je t’apprécie", keeping the constraint of a form of "subject object verb". Mar 28, 2022 at 9:01
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Well, sure it might work, just like
j’te kiffein an other register. 😘 Mar 28, 2022 at 16:40 -
It is not that it might work. These are basically "canonical" translations. No one disputes them.– LambieMar 28, 2022 at 16:56
"Je t'aime bien" est ce qui se rapproche de le plus de "I like you".
Whether addressing the other person as "tu" or as "vous", "I like you" can always be rendered without ambiguity by "J'ai de l'amitié pour toi." and "J'ai de l'amitié pour vous.".
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That should restaure Andrew Vit's confidence (*) in the fact that the French do know how to "half-love" or shall we say "how to like". ( see witty comment in the question if it's been missed)– LPHOct 5, 2018 at 21:33
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