Most people simply say, "Ai shiteru," but you could also say, "Ai shiteru yo 愛してるよ," which translates to something more along the lines of "I love you, you know." The yo ending adds emphasis and makes it a little more casual.
How to Say “I Love” in Japanese. If you're in a committed relationship, you can bump it up a notch to 大好きだよ (daisuki da yo), which is “I really like/love you.” The word daisuki in Japanese combines the kanji for “big” (大) and “like” 好き (like) to mean you have strong affection or interest in something.
Daisuki (大好き) – 'I really like you'
Daisuki includes the kanji, which means “large”. So, an English translation could be 'big love', or 'lots of love'. Like most phrases on this list, however, it is heavily based on context and not something you should throw around.
Suki desu – 好きです
About: When learning Japanese, a lot of people ask, does suki mean like or love? Suki translates best to 'like', but it's used in Japan to express that you're romantically interested in someone. You can also use it to say that you like something, like food, a skirt, anything.
Ara ara (あら あら) is a Japanese expression that is mainly used by older females and means “My my”, “Oh dear”, or “Oh me, oh my”.
The most literal way to say 'I love you' in Japanese is ai shiteru (愛してる / あいしてる ), or ai shiteru yo for emphasis. This is the phrase you might know from anime or textbooks.
In Japanese culture it's actually very uncommon to verbally express affection in the way that we are used to in the West. While it might feel normal to text “I love you” to your significant other at random points in the day, in Japan that would be considered extremely intense!
"Daisuki da yo." / "I love you." "大好きだよ。" "Daisuki da yo." / "I love you."
Daisuki can be used in both platonic and romantic relationships, as it conveys the feeling of romance (when taken in context) yet it can also convey feelings of great liking.
Koi. "Koi" is a love for the opposite sex or a feeling of longing for a specific person. It can be described as "romantic love" or "passionate love."
Confessing is called “kokuhaku” [告白] in Japanese. The typical sentence used to confess that you may have seen in manga or Japanese TV series is: “Suki desu. Tsukiattekudasai.” That can be translated as, “I love you. Please date me.”
In Japanese culture, love words are considered empty if they are not accompanied by a behavior that reflects those feelings. Like in other cultures, it can mean complimenting your partner, sending texts, making presents. It also means trying to anticipate your partner's needs and what could make them happier.
Kanojo. The standard Japanese word for 'girlfriend' is kanojo (彼女 / かのじょ). This word can be used by anyone in different settings.
The most common Japanese words for 'love' are koi (恋 / こい) and ai (愛 / あい). Love like koi can be exciting, while love like ai is heartfelt and deep. There are situations in which you can't use ai unless you are sure that they're 'the one'.
In Japan, touching another person's body is considered rude, even with friends or family. Hugging and kissing are mostly for couples. Our editor Kanako said that she's never hugged any of her family members as a grown woman. She hugs her foreign friends but not the Japanese ones.
What does wwww mean? Wwww is the Japanese equivalent of the English hahahaha, used to express laughter online and in text message. The more w's, the more enthusiastic the laughter. Like haha, wwww can be shortened to w(ww) and can have an ironic tone.
Another reason falls into the high context of Japanese language and culture. People believe that if there is good chemistry between two people, they don't require words. While that's undeniably a risky assumption, many believe that you must be able to read your partner's mind if you're in love.
“Across the cultures we surveyed, our research suggests that men tend to say I love you before women, and both men and women are less happy to hear “I love you” if they tend to avoid romantic intimacy or closeness.
Ara is a gender-neutral given name that originated in Armenia. According to Armenian legend, Ara was an extremely handsome king. So handsome, in fact, that Semiramis, an Assyrian queen, went to war to capture him.
Wasei-eigo (和製英語, meaning "Japanese-made English" or "English words coined in Japan") are Japanese-language expressions based on English words, or parts of word combinations, that do not exist in standard English or whose meanings differ from the words from which they were derived.