Imagine going to see the same movies on every single date with your partner.

Pretty boring, right?

Point is, creativity is key to every love relationship.

Bringing new things to the table is what keeps a relationship alive and as exciting as when it began.

That’s where learning expressions in your partner’s native language comes into play.

Being one of the best ways to show your acceptance, involvement, and appreciation of your partner, learning some Arabic love phrases and discovering how to express your love in Arabic can take your relationship to a whole new level.

Not only because it’s your partner’s native tongue, but also because Arabic is one of the best languages for expressing romantic feelings.

Having a hard time believing that? Check out Inez’s song My Love in Arabic, or Samira Said’s classic Youm Wara Youm. 

And considering that Arabic is the richest language by number of words (with more than 12 million of them), there is no end to the creativity you can employ when expressing your feelings in this beautiful language. 

Not the creative type? Unsure how to put your feelings into words that do them justice? Don’t worry; many Arabic poets throughout history have created enough love poetry to have you covered.

While we’d love to share some Arabic poetry here, this post will be dedicated to breaking down some basic phrases you can use to express love in Arabic.

The expressions below will all be in Modern Standard Arabic (MSA), unless otherwise noted.

Without further ado, let’s get right into it!

Table of Contents

1. Confess Your Affection: Pick-Up Lines and More
2. Fall in Deeper: “I Love You,” and More
3. Take it One Step Further: “Will You Marry Me?” and More
4. Endearment Terms
5. Must-Know Love Quotes
6. Conclusion

1. Confess Your Affection: Pick-Up Lines and More

Unless it’s love at first sight, every love journey starts with friendship. But at some point, someone has to break the ice and confess their feelings. 

• Can we go out on a date?
  هَل يُمكِنُنا الخُروجُ في مَوْعِد؟
  hal yumkinunā al-ḫurūǧu fī mawʿid?

In most Arabic-speaking cultures, romance is discreet and pretty private. We advise that you ask your partner out when it’s only you and them around. 

And because “meetup” and “date” are the same word in Arabic (مَوْعد [mawʿid]), you can elaborate by adding the word رومانسي (romansi), or “romantic,” after مَوْعِد  (mawʿid).

• You mean so much to me. [ addressing a male ]
  أَنتَ تَعني الكَثير لي.
  ʾanta taʿnī al-kaṯīr lī.

• You mean so much to me. [ addressing a female ]
  أَنتِ تَعنينَ الكَثير لي.
  ʾanti taʿnīna al-kaṯīr lī.

The phrases above can be used to express the care you have for your potential date. It can be a great way to transition into a romantic relationship if you’re already friends. Keep in mind that the first example is for addressing males (which is the default/neutral gender in Arabic). If you’re addressing a female, you should use the second phrase. 

• I’ve got a crush on you.
  أَنا مُغرَمٌ بِك.
  ʾanā muġramun bik.

While the exact concept of “having a crush” doesn’t exist in Arab culture, the expression above is the nearest way to express that feeling.

• You’re so beautiful.
  أَنتِ جَميلَةٌ جِدّاً.
  

This expression is mainly used for females.

• You’re so handsome.
  أَنتَ وَسيمٌ جِدّاً.
  ʾanta wasīmun ǧiddan.

And this one is for use toward males. 

• I think of you as more than a friend. [ addressing a male ]
  أَظُنُّ أَنَّكَ أَكثَرُ مِن مُجَرَّدِ صَديق.
  ʾaẓunnu ʾannaka ʾakṯaru min muǧarradi ṣadīq.

• I think of you as more than a friend. [ addressing a female ]
  أَظُنُّ أَنَّكِ أَكثَرُ مِن مُجَرَّدِ صَديقة.
  ʾaẓunnu ʾannaki ʾakṯaru min muǧarradi ṣadīqh.

2. Fall in Deeper: “I Love You,” and More

Love is like a beautiful flower. The more you water it, the more it blossoms into something even better. That comes with an investment in your partner through encouraging actions and continuous positive affirmations. Here are a few love phrases in Arabic to keep those romantic feelings and intentions intact throughout the early stages of your relationship.

• I love you. [ addressing a male ]
  أُحِبُّك
  ʾuḥibbuk

• I love you. [ addressing a female ]
  أُحِبُّكِ
  ʾuḥibbuki

• Words can’t describe my love for you.
  الكَلِماتُ لا تَقدِرُ أَن تَصِفَ حُبّي لَك.
  al-kalimātu lā taqdiru ʾan taṣifa ḥubbī lak.

• If I know what love is, it is because of you.
  إن كُنتُ أَعرِفُ مَعنى الحُب، فَذَلِكَ بِفَضلِك.
  ʾin kuntu ʾaʿrifu maʿnā al-ḥub, faḏalika bifaḍlik.

After expressing your love and spending a long time nurturing your relationship with your partner, it’s a good idea to use more creative expressions like this:

• You are my love.
  أَنتَ حُبّي.
  ʾanta ḥubbī.

When addressing females, anta becomes anty.

• You are my life.
  أَنتَ عُمري.
  ʾanta ʿumrī.

This expression is perfect to use once you’ve established a strong relationship and mutual love with your partner. Make sure you don’t overuse expressions like these, though! 

3. Take it One Step Further: “Will You Marry Me?” and More

As beautiful as it is to love someone and to share emotions, full commitment requires a legally binding agreement between you and your partner. That’s why it’s a good idea to go all in at some point and tie the knot. Here are some common Arabic love phrases you can use to express this desire to your partner.

• I want to be with you forever.
  أُريدُ أَن أَكونَ مَعَكَ إلى الأَبَد.
  ʾurīdu ʾan ʾakūna maʿaka ʾilā al-ʾabad.

Depending on your and your partner’s ideologies, being with each other forever may or may not mean marriage. If you plan to use this expression, make sure your partner is on the same page. For addressing a female, replace مَعَكَ (maʿaka) meaning “with you,” with the feminine form: مَعَكِ (maʿaki).

• We were meant to be together.
  قُدِّرَ لَنا أَن نَكونَ سَوِيّاً.
  quddira lanā ʾan nakūna sawiyan.

“Destiny,” or قَدَر (qadar), is a big word in Arabic-speaking cultures. Using it will make your love phrases stronger.

• Will you marry me? [ addressing a woman ]
  هَل تَتَزَوَّجيني؟
  hal tatazawwaǧīnī?

Marriage is very sacred in Arabic-speaking cultures. Only express this when you’re ready to fully commit to your partner. 

• Will you be my Valentine’s date?
  هَل سَتُوَاعِدني في عيد الحُب؟
  hal satuwaʿidnī fī ʿīd al-ḥub?

• I can’t imagine my life without you in it.
  لا أَستَطيعُ تَخَيُّلَ حَياتي مِن دونِك.
  lā ʾastaṭīʿu taḫayyula ḥaīātī min dūnik.

• You are the one I’ve been waiting for my whole life.
  أَنتَ الشَخصُ الَّذي كُنتُ أَنتَظِرُهُ طَوَالِ حَيَاتي.
  ʾanta al-šaḫṣu allaḏī kuntu ʾantaẓiruhu ṭawali ḥayatī.

4. Endearment Terms

Many couples in a long-term relationship like to address each other using endearment terms. These are unique, loving words or “pet names” used to show your partner each and every day what they mean to you. Below you’ll find several Arabic endearment terms you can use. 

• sweetheart
  حَبيبي
  ḥabībī

This is a very common endearment term among Arabic-speaking couples, and it’s one of the most popular Arabic words in the Western world. To address a female partner, you replace حَبيبي (ḥabībī) with حَبيبَتي (ḥabībatī).

• the light of my eyes
  نور عيني
  nūr ʿīnī

• my heart
  قَلبي
  qalbī

• my love
  حُبّي
  ḥubbī

• my dear [ addressing a male ]
  عَزيزي
  ʿazīzī

• my dear [ addressing a female ]
  عَزيزَتي
  ʿazīzatī

• my life
  عُمري
  ʿumrī

The literal translation for عُمري (ʿumrī) is actually “my age,” but it’s used in almost all dialects to mean “my life.”

5. Must-Know Love Quotes

After establishing all the traditional means of love, it’s great to spice things up with some unique love quotes every now and then. Given its very rich collection of literature and poetry—especially from the Jahiliyyah era—Arabic is one of the best languages in which to find sweet quotes and phrases for flirting. Here are some of our favorite Arabic love quotes with their English translations:

• For you, a thousand more times. [ addressing a male ]
  مِن أَجلِكَ أَلفُ مَرَّةٍ أُخرى.
  min ʾaǧlika ʾalfu marraẗin ʾuḫrā.

To address a female, replace أَجلِكَ (ʾaǧlika) with أَجلِكِ (ʾaǧliki).

• You are the love of my soul. [ addressing a male ]
  أَنتَ حَبيبُ روحي.
  ʾanta ḥabību rūḥī.

• You are the love of my soul. [ addressing a female ]
  أَنتِ حَبيبَةُ روحي.
  ʾanti ḥabībaẗu rūḥī.

• There’s so much of you in my heart.
  ما أَكثَرُكَ في قَلبي.
  mā ʾakṯaruka fī qalbī.

• Take care of my heart because you’re in it.
  اِحرِص عَلى قَلبي لِأَنَّكَ فيه.
  iḥriṣ ʿalā qalbī liʾannaka fīh.

Talking to a female, replace li’anaka with li’anaki.

• Your smile is paradise.
  اِبتِسامَتُكَ هِيَ الجَنَّة.
  ibtisāmatuka hiya al-ǧannah.

When speaking to a female, replace اِبتِسامَتُكَ (ibtisāmatuka) with اِبتِسامَتُكِ (ibtisāmatuki).

• Where there is love, there is peace.
  أَيْنَما وُجِدَ الحُب، وُجِدَ السَلام.
  ʾaynamā wuǧida al-ḥub, wuǧida al-salām.

6. Conclusion

While this blog post mainly focused on couples, many expressions can be used with your other loved ones as well. Which of these love phrases did you like the most? Are you ready to try it out on your beloved?

Now that you’re armed with numerous Arabic love phrases, you can take things up a notch and work on impressing your partner with even more love expressions.

But what’s the best way to do so? Look no further than ArabicPod101. 

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