The everyday way to say I love you in Spanish is te quiero (teh KYEH-roh). Partners, parents, children and close friends all say it. Te amo is deeper and more solemn: in Spain it is kept for intense romantic moments, while in much of Latin America couples use it more freely. To reply, say yo también te quiero.
- I love you (everyday)
- te quiero
- I love you (deep, romantic)
- te amo
- I love you too
- yo también te quiero
- I miss you
- te echo de menos (Spain)
- Level
- A1
Te quiero or te amo: which should you say?
Querer means both to want and to love, and te quiero is the version you will hear most: at the end of a phone call to your mother, on a birthday card to a friend, at the door before your partner leaves for work. Te amo, from amar, carries more weight. Many Spaniards would find it too much for a friend and save it for a partner, a wedding or a song.
| Spanish | English | Who you say it to |
|---|---|---|
| Te quiero | I love you | Partner, family, close friends |
| Te quiero mucho | I love you very much | The same, warmer; common with family and friends |
| Te amo | I love you (deeply) | A partner; solemn in Spain |
| Te adoro | I adore you | Partner, children; affectionate |
| Estoy enamorado de ti | I'm in love with you | A man speaking; a woman says enamorada |
| Me gustas | I like you, I fancy you | Romantic interest, early on |
| Me encantas | I really like you | Stronger than me gustas |
How do you say I love you to family and friends?
With family, te quiero is normal and frequent. To several people at once, Spain uses os quiero (vosotros); Latin America says los quiero. Messages between friends and family in Spain often end with un beso or besos (a kiss, kisses), and un abrazo (a hug) is common with friends of any gender.
Te quiero, mamá.
I love you, Mum.
Os quiero mucho.
I love you all very much.
Spain, to a group.
Los quiero mucho.
I love you all very much.
Latin America, to a group.
Te quiero ver.
I want to see you.
Here querer means want, not love: context decides.
Parents use mi amor with children too. In one A1 romance, María's father is delighted by an engagement she never meant to announce:
Javier dice: "María, mi amor, estoy muy orgulloso.What pet names do Spanish speakers use?
Spanish is generous with terms of endearment, and they are used far beyond couples. A neighbour or a shopkeeper in Spain may call you cariño or cielo without any romance at all.
- mi amormy love
- cariñodarling, love
- cielosweetheart (literally "sky")
- mi vidamy life, my darling
- corazónsweetheart (literally "heart")
- guapo / guapagorgeous, handsome; casual and very common in Spain
Love letters lean on the same words. In an A2 story, Clara opens a coffee tin in the café she has just inherited from her grandmother and finds decades-old love letters inside:
Mi amor, te echo de menos cada día. Cada día sin ti es imposible.Te echo de menos is how Spain says I miss you; in Latin America the usual phrase is te extraño.
How do you reply to te quiero?
The simplest answer is yo también (me too) or the full yo también te quiero. Y yo a ti (and I you) sounds warm and natural. Couples and families also play the game of yo más (I love you more).
Yo también te quiero.
I love you too.
Y yo a ti.
And I love you.
Yo más.
I love you more.
Playful.
Yo también te amo.
I love you too.
Answering te amo.
Read A1 Spanish romance stories and tap any word to see what it means.
Read free in your browserFrequently asked questions
Is te amo too strong?
In Spain it can be. Many Spaniards say te quiero to their partner every day and keep te amo for big moments. In much of Latin America te amo is more common between couples, so it sounds less dramatic there.
Can you say te quiero to a friend?
Yes. Te quiero and te quiero mucho are normal between close friends in Spanish, in a way that "I love you" often is not in English.
How do you pronounce te quiero?
Say "teh KYEH-roh". The qu sounds like k, the ie is a single syllable, and the r is a light tap of the tongue.
How do you say I love you so much?
Te quiero muchísimo. Te quiero con locura (I love you like mad) is a common, more passionate version.
What does te quiero mucho mean?
I love you very much. Despite the mucho, it is often a warm, everyday phrase for family and friends rather than a grand declaration.