In survey after survey — our own included — French is voted the sexiest language in the world (sorry Russian, most people just can’t handle your rugged beauty). But the credit can’t all go to France! The language that makes so many of us swoon is spoken by roughly 300 million people in 29 countries, and that’s just counting the places where it’s an official language. While the French in France can lay claim to the most well-known way to say “I love you,” Africans and North Americans have their fair share of sultry pillow talk too. If you really want to talk about l’amour, you’ll be well-served to heed the example of French speakers in all of their internationally diverse glory. Here are our favorite French expressions about love.
International French Expressions About Love
France
Avoir un cœur d’artichaut
Literally: To have an artichoke’s heart
Actually: To fall in love easily and frequently
Quebec
Tomber en amour
Literally: To fall into love
Actually: To fall in love
Belgium
Être bleu de quelqu’un
Literally: To be blue about someone
Actually: To be crazy about someone
Cameroon
Glisser pour quelqu’un
Literally: To slip for someone
Actually: To fall in love with someone
France
Avoir un coup de foudre
Literally: To have a thunder-clap
Actually: To fall in love at first sight
Burkina Faso
Être kaoté
Literally: To be knock-outed
Actually: To fall madly in love
Haiti
Avoir un coup de soleil
Literally: To get sunburned
Actually: To have a crush on someone
Congo and Senegal
Être amouré
Literally: To be inloved
Actually: To be in love
France
Être fleur bleue
Literally: To be blue flower
Actually: To be romantic and sensitive
So which are your favorite French expressions about love? Are you knocked-out, thunderstruck, burnt to a crisp, or do you have an artichoke’s heart?
