How to Say “I love you” in Chinese
Feelings and opinions · HSK 2
"I love you" in Chinese is 我爱你 (wǒ ài nǐ). 我爱你 is grammatically simple but culturally weightier than its English counterpart. Older generations of Chinese couples, even after fifty years of marriage, may never say it out loud; love is shown through actions, cooking, and care.
Primary translation
我爱你
wǒ ài nǐ
Traditional: 我愛你
When to use it
我爱你 is grammatically simple but culturally weightier than its English counterpart. Older generations of Chinese couples, even after fifty years of marriage, may never say it out loud; love is shown through actions, cooking, and care. Younger people say it more freely, often in texts, and the number 520 (wǔ'èr líng) sounds like 我爱你, so May 20th has become an unofficial Valentine's Day where couples send 520 or 5.20 yuan red envelopes on WeChat. Between family members 我爱你 still feels borrowed from Western culture; 我喜欢你 (I like you) is what you say to confess a crush.
Example sentences
我爱你，一辈子。
Wǒ ài nǐ, yí bèizi.
I love you, for a lifetime.
妈妈，我爱你。
Māma, wǒ ài nǐ.
Mom, I love you.
他从来没对我说过我爱你。
Tā cónglái méi duì wǒ shuō guo wǒ ài nǐ.
He has never said 'I love you' to me.