Saying 'I Love You': 'Te Amo' or 'Te Quiero'?

Choice of Verb Varies With Context, Region If you want to tell someone you love him or her in Spanish, do you say te amo or te quiero? Any good dictionary will tell you that either amar or querer (and even some other verbs such as desear, gustar and encantar) can be translated in some contexts as "to love." There's no simple answer to the question, as it depends on context as well as where in the Spanish-speaking world you are. In an appropriate context, neither te quiero nor te amo is likely to be misunderstand as a way of expressing love. But there can be some subtle differences, as a discussion from our forum, which includes native speakers, indicates. Here are some excerpts: Nootch76: What does te quiero mean? I was just wondering what this means when someone says this to another in the Mexican culture. Love, lust or what? Garcilaso: Te quiero simply means "I love you." Of course it depends on the stress and the intonation, but to imply other connotations like in English I want you I think other verbs would be used, such as te deseo or the like. There are sentences where te quiero won't mean "I love you," of course. Ah te quiero ver, meaning something like "I'd like to see you there" in that context. Te quiero enviar una postal, "I want to send a postcard to you." Encantame: Te quiero is appropriate for any love spouse, friend, parents, siblings. Te amo (verb amar) is usually reserved for your lover and not your friends or family, although I'm sure there are different countries/different ways. For gringos is best to stick to this pattern and we won't have to worry about doing it wrong. ChrisAnvers: I always thought that this te amo was more usual in literature, no ? Encantame: Well, it might be in literature, but it is also used in real life. It's not one of those things you don't hear except in a snooty book or poem. If you don't hear it much, and hear the other more, it's probably because you can say te quiero to a lot more people compared tote amo, so just the usage opportunity alone is going to be noticed, as you can say te quiero to anyone including your lover, but te amo is reserved for the intimate kind of love. So you just ain't going to hear it as often. It's definitely words for that special person. ... Speaking in generalities, again, customs may be different in some areas. Lopezssn: Te quiero implies affection, love, care, not necessarily lustful. You can say te quiero to your mother, father , sibling, etc. It also depends on the region. It is similar to te amo. Me gusta on the other hand when speaking about a romantic kind of like (not ice cream or candy) implies desire, lust, sexually appealing, sensually appealing. Me gusta ese chico, chica, muchacha, etc, muchacho, etc. Example: Sabes, me gustas mucho. You wouldn't hear that statement from one friend about the other. ... There are subtle intricacies that come with experience. Araspace: Literally te quiero means "I want you," but how it is intended depends on the look in their eyes when they say it! Aligoam: As many other have already explained, te quiero in Spanish, though meaning literally "I want you" translates as "I love you" and it is for family but also for love. We make no differences. I say te quieroto my daughter, but I also say te quiero to my husband. Te amo, though it means literally "I love you," is more rarely used. I would say, only when you're feeling specially romantic.

I could translate "I want you" to Spanish in several ways, but I think the best one could be te quiero para m or even quiero que seas mo-a. Of course, when using it to communicate sexual desire, you can also translate it as Te deseo. Camicat: Language must always be interpreted according to context i.e according to the conversation. ... Jazzeerun: Te quiero or Te amo literally means "I love you." You may also say te estrao, I miss you. Ibaquerena: Te quiero can be both for people close to you or for friends. It all depends on the importance you give to the words. You can tell a good friend te quiero and it may just mean the "I love you" that some friends tell one another without any romantic connotation. On the other hand, you an tell your wife te quiero mucho and it may mean "I love you" in the sense a lover would use it. Te amo is mostly used among people who are learning Spanish from a textbook or in telenovelas. Medaly: My husband is from the Canary Islands and I am from Argentina. If I were to say te amo to my husband, rather than taking me seriously he would think I have turned "telenovela" on him. I would probably end up laughing on the floor if he were to say something like that to me. Te quiero is the most common way to express romantic love (and human affection in general) in the real world. Te amo belongs to the world of telenovelas and romance novels. I am sure that other native speakers will coincide with me on that one. Lissah3: But my husband from Venezuela always said te amo to me. Do you think that means maybe he never meant it? Medaly: Well, he probably does mean it. Still it is not that common to use it outside of telenovelas and boleros. Marijos: Te quiero and te amo mean the same but are used in different contexts. Te quiero is used regarding love but in any context: family, friends and one's partner. Te amo and anything related to the verb amar is used only when you speak about true and romantic love. Therefore is not so common to hear it, and it is frequently used in novels, poetry and soaps. Mulmex: Estoy de acuerdo con Marijos. Words can have more than one meaning. Esperar for example can mean to wait, to hope or to expect. Querer has two uses: to love, and to want. As Marijos pointed out, amar is usually a bit stronger. I don't agree that it is always romantic. In Mxico it is commonly used with mothers, and grandmothers as well as with lovers and husbands. Te quiero can also be used the same way. However, you would never say te amo to your best friend, but te quiero would be fine in that case. Me encantas can also be translated as "I love you," but is rarely used as such. Me encantas is more commonly used for "I'm enchanted" (by you). I believe usage varies by country and region to some extent. It can also be a question of habit. Through time, a particular couple may just choose te quiero over te amoor vice versa. Whatever makes you happy. Saying "I want you" is a little bit different. Te deseo can mean I want you as in to desire someone. You would not use te quiero to say this. When you want someone to do something you can't say Te quiero tirar la basura for I want you to take out the trash. Instead you would say, Quiero que tires la basura, literally I want that you do something. None of this is cast in stone. These are just my observations. Feel free to disagree.

Words To Love By
Part 2: The Vocabulary of Love
By Gerald Erichsen

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How many ways can you say "love" in Spanish? Here are some of the most important ways, but there are others. In the lists of "love" as a noun or verb you will find alternative translations in parentheses following the Spanish word. In the list of phrases, the parentheses indicate the English phrases that include "love."

"Love" as a noun

aficin (enthusiasm): Tiene aficin por las cosas de su tierra. She has a love for the things of her land. amado (sweetheart) amante (sweetheart) amistad (friendship) amor (pure love, romantic love) caridad (charity): Si yo hablase lenguas humanas y anglicas, y no tengo caridad .... If I speak in tongues of humans and angels, and have not love .... cario/a (sweetheart): cero (score in tennis): Cero a cero. Love all. pasin (passion, not necessarily romantic): Tiene una pasin por vivir, una pasin por saber. He has a love of living, a love of knowledge. querido (sweetheart) recuerdos (regards): Mndale recuerdos mos. Send him my love.

"Love" as a verb

amar (to love, to love romantically): Te amo. I love you.

encantar (indicating strong like): Me encanta escribir.I love to write. gustar mucho (indicating strong like): Me gusta mucho este sof. I love this sofa. querer (to love romantically, to want): Te quiero. I love you.

Phrases using "love"

amaro (love affair) amor a primera vista (love at first sight) amor mo (my love) aventura amorosa (love affair) cancin de amor (love song) carta amatoria (love letter) carta de amor (love letter) enamorarse (to fall in love with): Me enamor de una bruja. I fell in love with a witch. estar enamorado (to be in love): Estoy enamorada de l. I am in love with him. flechazo (love at first sight): Fue flechazo. It was love at first sight. love story (historia de amor) love token (prenda de amor) hacer el amor (to make love) lance de amor (love affair) me quiere, no me quiere (she loves me, she loves me not) mi amor (my love) no se llevan bien (there is no love lost between them) no se tienen ningn aprecio (there is no love lost between them) periquito (love bird or parakeet) por el amor de (for the love of): Por el amor de una rosa, el jardinero es servidor de mil espinas. For the love of a rose, the gardener is the servant of a thousand thorns. por nada del mundo (not for love nor money) por pura aficin (for the pure love of it, just for the love of it): Toca el piano por pura aficin.She plays the piano just for the love of it. relaciones sexuales (love making) vida sexual (love life)