Words: love, with love

“Ti amo” in inglese si dice I love you, certo, ma gli anglofoni usano la stessa espressione per dire anche “ti voglio bene”, una tragedia! Per essere precisi potreste dire “I’m in love with you” e, se dovete lasciare qualcuno, pur manifestando il vostro affetto, vi consigliamo: 1) di non farlo a San Valentino, 2) di usare la seguente frase: “I love you, but I just want to be friends”!  – LANGUAGE LEVEL B2 (UPPER INTERMEDIATE)

Mark Worden (Standard British accent)

Love is a simple word, but a complicated concept. Italians, for example, always want to know what are the British equivalents of “ti amo” and “ti voglio bene.” “Ti amo” in English is simply “I love you,” while “ti voglio bene” is either (1) “I’m really fond of you” or “I really like you,” but in recent years the British, like the Americans, have begun to say “I love you” as a simple expression of affection, rather like (2) “ti voglio bene.”  And so, if you’re confused and you find yourself in a relationship in which you do not wish to be romantically involved (3), the simplest thing to say is: “I just want to be friends.”
And Italians are also confused by the British and American use of the expression “With love” and “Lots of love” in emails, messages, postcards and letters. Is this a romantic declaration?  No, it’s simply the equivalent or “con affetto.”
Happy Valentine’s Day! Lots of love!

GLOSSARY

1    either: sia
2    rather like: piuttosto simile a  
3    you do not wish… involved: in cui non desideri essere romanticamente coinvolto