Thread: How do you say "I love you" in Russian?

I want to know how to say I love you in Russian.

http://masterrussian.net/mforum/view...197695#p197695

INFORMAL:

Я люблю тебя.
ya lyoo-BLYOO tee-BYAH

Я тебя люблю.
ya tee-BYAH lyoo-BLYOO

Я = I
люблю = love
тебя = you (familiar)


OLD-FASHIONED / FORMAL / PLURAL:

(commonly used in classical literature)

Я люблю вас.
ya lyoo-BLYOO vahs

Я = I
люблю = love
вас = you (formal or plural)

commonly used in classical literature

And by singers during their concerts. )))


P. S. Please correct my mistakes.

Yes, when it's plural

Я люблю тебя.
Я тебя люблю.
Акцент на втором слове.

Люблю я тебя.
Люблю тебя я.
Тебя я люблю.
Тебя люблю я.
Акцент на первом слове.

Тоже самое можно если вместо "тебя" использовать "Вас".
Так будет более официальный вариант (к малознакомому человеку).

Originally Posted by olegh

Так будет более официальный вариант (к малознакомому человеку).

Мне всегда было интересно, как можно признаться в любви "официально" или "малознакомому человеку"? Может быть когда влюбляешься с первого взгляда?

Я вас любил....
http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/I_Loved_You_Once

Originally Posted by MasterAdmin

INFORMAL:

Я люблю тебя.
ya lyoo-BLYOO tee-BYAH

Я тебя люблю.
ya tee-BYAH lyoo-BLYOO

Я = I
люблю = love
тебя = you (familiar)

Ok, are they gender specific? I still fail at the male and female thing as I'm American with my American English that doesn't really care what gender you're speaking to.

Originally Posted by Chelle

Ok, are they gender specific?

No gender specific.

Thank you, Zaya ... however, why are the words 'Love' and 'You' interchangeable? In English you could say "You I love." but you'll get some odd looks. But, "I you love" VS "I love you" doesn't work in English. (Forgive me, I'm a baby Russian speaker )

Originally Posted by Chelle

however, why are the words 'люблю' and 'тебя' interchangeable?

While "люблю" can mean only "I love."
любишь - [you] love
любит - [he/she/it] loves
любим - [we] love
etc.
That's why we can change word order and it's still clear which word in the sentence is the subject and which is the object. And that's why even just "Люблю тебя" is possible (which variant is to use is a stylistic thing, it depends on the context; you don't need to to examine into such details now, it's better to read something about conjugation in Russian first).

Again, thanks heaps, Zaya. It's all just so different from everything I've known for 33 years...my brain is having a hard time while screaming "NOOOO!!!" over and over.

I see. )) BTW what foreign languages have you learned* before? E.g. in school (I know it was a long time ago but anyway - what? ).

*or "did you learn"? I don't know, my English is far from perfect. ))

I'm more than happy to correct your usage of the English language, but in the American way. UK English has a lot of different slang and spelling. But you got your questions and points across just fine.

I started learning the Russian/Cyrillic alphabet when I was 13. I got to the point where I could "read" but had zero clue what I was saying. I'm still kinda there now that I've decided to pick it back up again. (Thank God for the internet!) I have never studied another language. Well, I learned curse words in Spanish from school ... and I know how to say 'I love you' in Dutch, but this all hardly counts. So, aside from being able to pronounce and "read" by sounding out words, I know nothing. Well I can say goodbye and grandmother - absolutely useless stuff at the moment. (Especially when both of my grandmothers are dead :-/)

Originally Posted by Chelle

Well, I learned curse words in Spanish from school

))

It's all just so different from everything I've known for 33 years...

You've reminded me this:

A similarly confusing phrase is "I/you/she/we/et al. have an X". It is У меня/вас/неё/нас Х. All those words in the middle do not mean "have." And neither does У. But the overall phrase means what I quoted.

http://www.efl.ru/forum/threads/32339/

As I struggle to understand, I appreciate your assistance and am in your debt. Thank you again!

To say that somebody has something, Russians usually don't use the nominative case of a noun/pronoun and the verb in the corresponding form, they use the preposition "у" and the genitive.
У меня красивые глаза. - I have beautiful eyes.
У тебя красивые глаза. - You have beautiful eyes.
У него красивые глаза. - He has beautiful eyes.
У неё красивые глаза. - She has beautiful eyes.
У нас красивые глаза. - We have beautiful eyes.
etc
You'll find no verbs in the Russian sentences above, but they do mean "I have...", "You have" and so on. That's what was meant in that quote.
Well, frankly speaking, in some cases the verb is also used. But there is one form for all the persons:
У меня есть собака. - I have a dog.
У тебя есть собака. - You have a dog.
У него есть собака. - He has a dog.
У неё есть собака. - She has a dog.
У нас есть собака. - We have a dog.
etc
Russian sentences formed like English "I have ..." exist too, but they are rarely used in everyday contexts. The Russian verb which is used in such sentences is "иметь." They are often either of official style or out-dated. And (!) don't forget that this verb also means "to have sex with." So forget about possibility to make up such sentences until you learn "У меня", "У тебя" and so on by heart. )))

Oh! Dear heart, I was confused but and g4rasping it - everyone has great eyes and a dog! :P But when you got to the whole "sex with" thing... I giggled 'til I cried. Thank you!! This is more fun than I'd hoped. Solemn vow not to speak with Russian males until I have that whole verb thing mastered!!! Well, maybe the cute ones. (j/k)