# FR: I miss X - X me manque



## dods

I miss you.

anybody can help me translate this to french, please? 

merci beaucoup!

*Moderator note:* multiple threads merged to create this one.


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## DDT

"tu me manques" or "vous me manquez"

DDT


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## la grive solitaire

Tu me manques = I miss you (literally, "You are missing to me".) Tu is the singular "you" used with family, friends your own age, and young children.

Vous me manquez = I miss you (literally, "You are missing to me.") Vous is both the singular "you" (speaking to one person) and the plural "you" (speaking to more than one person) that is used in formal situations and with people you don't know.


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## Kelly B

Try to think of it as "to be missed by" first: tu me manques = you are missed by me = I miss you.

"To be missing or lacking" also works in some contexts: "il y a quelque chose qui manque" = There is something missing or Something is missing.


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## zixi

Can someone please help me with manquer? I just can't get my head round it. 
Ma famille me manque. - I miss my family.

OK, I'm looking at it. I just about understand how it works... but then I've got this example (from a book):
Mes parents me manquent - I miss my parents.
No sorry I can't understand that one at all!

And how would I say my family miss me??

Some examples... increasingly tricky would help. I've got the verb tables... I just can't understand this verb!!! It seems all 'squiffy' to me when I see it in practice. I think I need it explained. 
Help... please!!


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## sioban

My family misses me. ---> Je manque à ma famille.
"manquer" is employed in reverse order to "miss" (excuse my approximate english)
"miss" ---> the subject suffers (I miss my family ---> I suffer)
"manquer"---> the object suffers (Ma famille me manque ----> "me" (I) suffer)
I'm not sure to be clear, I'm better for grammar than for talking.


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## zixi

Got it!! Merci


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## yojan

Ok, I im not completely sure about my grammatical terminology in this case so forgive me. Let me just explain it as how I would then...

Tu me manque (I miss you) - It might help if you see the senteces as ''You are missed by me''. Thats me putting it in the passive voice. Its not the mot correct translation but if u consider such sentences like

''Ma famille me manquent'' - My family is missed by me
''Elle la manque'' - She is missed by her/it
''La maison nous manquons'' - The house is missed by us

Please note that the above is NOT a translation but perhaps just to help you understand. 

Hope it helped you more than it confused me...


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## zixi

Yojan
You haven't confused me and you have helped!! Thanks for the examples and for giving me the sense rather than the literal meaning. I think I need to see this verb used, with examples and the more explanations I have the better. So thank you! I was seriously confused over it. It seemed to be illogical... But it's starting to make sense now.
Merci.


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## yojan

ne rien...donc...tes exemples

Ma chéri me manque - I miss my darling(loved one) - ''My darling is missed by me''

Manquez-vous les? - Do you miss them? - ''They are missed by you(pl.)''

Maybe you should try posting some sentences of your own. There is really very little creativity I can offer when using the verb ''manquer''. 

Jus keep it in mind, try turning the English sentence in the passive voice first before translating it into French. And remember to use the direct object pronouns to replace the subject (in the English sentence)

Je *la* manque - She misses me (I am missed by her)....and not Je *lui *manque. That got me confused for a second there...


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## sioban

I'm sorry but it's "Je *lui* manque", "je la manque" is not correct.
Et "do you miss them?" ---> "est-ce qu'ils vous manquent?"


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## yojan

woops...really really sorry...


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## zixi

I'm getting the hang of it... it's a totally different way of looking at the idea of missing people and things... That's why I have the problem...

Il me manque un cerveau  

thanks both...


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## sioban

You just have to inverse. When you translate, the subject becomes the object, and the object becomes the subject. "manquer" could literally be translated by "be missed".
I miss her. ---> She's being missed by me. ----> Elle me manque.

I remember I had hard times to understand that when I was in middle school, I sympathize. It's a mental gymnastics, when you get it, it will seem so easy!


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## zixi

Yes, you've hit the nail on the head. It just seems the wrong way round.

The 'being missed' is the best way to see it. I just have to think like that.

As Yojan says I need to write a load of sentences as practice! You've made me feel better by saying it's hard! I thought I was being dense.


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## timpeac

You might find it helps to think of "manquer à" as meaning "to be lacking to".

My parents miss me = I am lacking to my parents = je manque à mes parents.

They miss me = I am lacking to them = je leur manque.

I miss them = they are lacking to me = ils me manquent.


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## zixi

Thanks for that... It helps solve the subject-object confusion which is causing my problem as Sioban has noted.

I've saved all of your words to file and I'm going to have a go at writing some sentences! Never let it be said that Le courage me manque


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## tortue_magique

*Tu me manque*

I hear them say it a lot in french movies, is this what it means? Because Tu me manque sounds a bit strange, shouldn't it be "Je te manque" ?


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## lifehouse

I don't know the particular reason why it is like this but 'to miss' in your sense is written just like that.

Tu me manque - I miss you.
Il nous manques - We miss him.
Ils vous manquent - They miss you guys.

This article might interest you: http://french.about.com/library/weekly/aa081900.htm


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## Nicomon

lifehouse said:


> Tu me manques - I miss you.
> Il nous manque (no s) - We miss him.
> Ils vous manquent - They miss you guys.


 
They miss you guys = Vous leur manquez (les amis)
Ils vous manquent =  You miss them


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## femmefee

I know it sounds strange but "Tu me manques" does mean I miss you, another word, You are missed by Me.


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## namyls

The verb is "manquer à quelqu'un" and not "se manquer", so the problem is still in the form:

"I miss them" = "Ils me manquent"
"We miss him" = "Il nous manque"
"They miss me" = "Je leur manque"
"He misses you" = "Tu lui manques"
"You miss her" = "Elle te manque"

and so on...


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## DearPrudence

OK. Let's see.
In fact, that's quite a tricky structure as in French, it's the other way round.
So:

I miss *you.
Tu *me manques.

Likewise

He misses *us
Nous*lui manquons

We miss *him
Il *nous manque

Peter misses *you
Tu* manques à Peter

I miss them
your turn 

And unfortunately things like "*je me manque de toi*" is simply not correct


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## paulio

I know we don't say this, but I think it can be quite helpful to re-phrase the English as
"she is missing to me" before translating it, then the translation "elle me manque" makes more sense.


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## to_rk

des personnes sincere qui vous ouvriront leur coeur --> here 'ouvriront' correspons to des personnes sincere.

where as

Elle me manque --> manque corresponds to me (moi). --> it gives the meaning as i miss her rather than she miss me.


In what cases the verb correspons to the Objet. --> Elle *me manque*

and in what cases, it corresponds to sujet. --> *des personnes sincere* qui vous *ouvriront* leur coeur 

I hope you understand what i'm trying to say.

Please explain. Thanks


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## Maître Capello

What confuses you is that _*Elle* me manque_ means _I miss *her*_…


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## joyeuse

And "She misses me" would be "*Je lui manque*?"

Is that correct, Maitre Capello?

joyeuse


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## Maître Capello

joyeuse said:


> And "She misses me" would be "*Je lui manque*?"


 Yes.


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## joyeuse

Merci Maître Capello! 

Hope this is helpful, to_rk?  This is a difficult one for me, too.  It's kind of like saying "She is missed by me," instead of "I miss her."   (or "I am missed by her," instead of "She misses me.")  Strange for the English speaker! 

joyeuse


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## to_rk

hi all

thanks. I'm looking for some explanation to reduce the confusion. 

In what cases the verb correspons to the Objet. Elle *me manque*

and in what cases, it corresponds to sujet. 
*des personnes sincere* qui vous *ouvriront* leur coeur

thanks


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## Benouze

Hi,



> In what cases the verb correspons to the Objet. Elle *me manque*


 
The verb corresponds to the subject.

*Manquer à* quelqu'un = *to be missed by* somebody.


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## itka

I'm not sure I understand your question. What do you mean with "correspond" ?
Let's take the two verbs in french : ouvrir and manquer. Their construction is exactly the same :
Elle m'ouvre son coeur = She opens her heart to me (she tells me what she thinks)
Elle me manque = She is missing to me

The difference is between english and french.
You say : "I miss somebody" = Somebody is missing (to me)
We say : "_Somebody_ me manque"

That's no grammar question.
You just have to learn the meaning of this verb :
"manquer à quelqu'un" = "to be missing to somebody".


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## nerdcooper

I have a friend in Trois Riviers, Quebec, and he says "I miss you" something along the lines of "Je m'ennuie".  But I thought this means "I am bored"?  Can anyone help?  I don't know if this is a dialect, or slang.  Is there any other way of saying "I miss you" other than "Je te manques"?


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## Kelly B

Welcome, nerdcooper, 
Yes (except that _je te manques_ doesn't mean _*I* miss *you*_: see above. ) 
s'ennuyer


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## philosophia

As said above "I miss you" is "_*tu me* manque_s", maybe what your friend means is "_je m'ennuie de toi / loin de toi / sans toi_" -> I'm bored (you're right about that) without you.

And welcome Nerdcooper !


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## bobepine

_Je m'ennuie de toi _doesn't have to do with being bored, unlike _je m'ennuie sans toi. Je m'ennuie de toi _is a direct equivalent to _I miss you _in Quebec French.


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## philosophia

You're right bobepine in France French "_je m'ennuie de toi_" also means "_tu me manques_" whereas "_je m'ennuie sans toi_" only implies "_tu me manques_" and isn't therefore a synonym.


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## janpol

Je me languis de toi.


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## Magmod

Why does the subject not agree with the verb (manquer= to miss) in French?:

I miss my parents
Mes parents me manquent
We have missed you very much.
Vous nous avez manqué beaucoup.


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## Maître Capello

Well, it is never the subject that agrees with the verb; it is the other way around! At any rate, the verb does agree with the subject in your two French sentences… 

_Me*s* parent*s* me manqu*ent*_.
_*Vous* nous av*ez* beaucoup manqué._

You are maybe confused because in French the subject and object are switched with respect to English: _I _(subject) _miss you _(object) _= Tu _(subject) _me _(object) _manques_…


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## Magmod

In order to make more sense of the French for the English mind and vice versa:

_*Tu* *me* manques_ =
You are missing to me
This way in both languages: the person being missed is the subject of _manquer  _


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## doinel

I miss you : tu me manques= je te languis.Je me languis de toi ( old-fashioned)
I miss my family: ma famille me manque = je la languis.
Cela surprend également les francophones!
Welcome to the forum rayrox222


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## Glasguensis

That's just the way it is. The way you say something in one language isn't always the way you say it in another. Think of it as "You are the thing missing from me".


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## Robin77

Hi everyone  
I'm trying to figure out how you would say "I miss it" and Im not sure if I've got it right.
Im talking about how I broke my iPod and I miss it. Does it make sense to say:

J'ai cassé mon dernier iPod, et je m'en manque!

Sorry, Im only a beginner! Any help is appreciated


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## Prima Facie

Hum..."It" is the subject, the iPod, and I think that it is "il",

therefore, J'ai cassé mon dernier iPod et il va me manquer.

Wait for a native confirmation, however.


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## xandersun

Bonjour,

je voudrais savoir comment dit-on << I miss that >> (ex. We used to vacation at the beach. I miss that) en français - à Paris et à Montréal? Est-ce qu'on peut dire <<je manque ça>> à Montréal? Ou c'est un anglicisme? Est-ce qu'on pourrait (devrait) dire <<ça me manque>> à la place partout dans la francophonie? Quelle est l'expression la plus naturelle d'exprimer cette idée en français familier?

Merci!


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## djweaverbeaver

Ça me manque.

This is construction is quite different from the English.  Actually the verb here is not _manquer qqch_ but rather *manquer à qqch*.  This little preposition makes all the difference in the world because it changes the meaning of the verb.  *Manquer qqch* means to miss something because you were late or because you didn't show up in/on time.  In this case, you could use the synonyms *rater *or more informal *louper*.  _Ah mince!  Il est 9h57 et je suis coincé dans un bouchon.  Je vais *manquer/rater/louper* mon train parce qu'il part à 10h._ Je n'y arriverai pas à temps. (= Ah, shoot!  It's 9:57, and I'm stuck in a traffic jam.  I'm going to miss my train because it leaves at 10 o'clock.  I won't be able to get there in time.)

*Manquer à* is used when you are in want of someone/something.  I miss my family is *ma famille me manque* (= my family is missing/lacking to me).  I miss you is *tu me manques* (= you are missing to me).

You should check out this *website *because they also have a video explaining this.


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## Nicomon

Hello xandersun,

Other than _« ça me manque »_ what you might eventually hear in Québec, is : « _je m'ennuie de ça _». 
 E.g. _Je m'ennuie de nos vacances à la plage / de nos soirées de filles. _That one would be a Quebecois twist, I think. 

But if you hear  « _je manque ça _»... then in my opinion the person isn't francophone.


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## FreddieFirebird

Sorry if this was asked above, but I skimmed and didn't see it.

Can you use this structure with a verb too?  I know I can say "ce qui me manque, c'est de grimper aux arbres", but can I also use the infinitive as a subject here?  

"Grimper aux arbres me manque."  Does that work?

Thanks!


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## Oddmania

Sure, it sounds fine


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## jamesk65

I get in a tangle sometimes mirroring it or reversing it turn it into a question, especially using "lui" as a feminine pronoun: "I miss her but does she miss me"?- "Elle me manque mais est-ce que je lui manque (à elle)"?


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## Oddmania

Hi,

I would actually tend to stress the word refering to *myself*, not to _her_ : _"Elle me manque, mais est-ce que *moi*, je lui manque ?"_

In English, you're bascially saying that *you* do something ("*I* miss her"), and you wonder whether *she* does it as well ("Does *she* miss me").
In French, it's got to be the other way around: *she* does something to me ("*Elle* me manque"), but do *I* affect her as well? (hence, "Est-ce que *moi*, je lui manque ?").


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## Nate_J

This is one of those confusing verbs that functions the other way around. "manquer" means "to miss," but it really means "to be missed by."

"Tu me manques!" looks like it means "You miss me!" but it actually means "I missed you!"

See, the object being missed is used as the subject in French, and the person doing the missing is in the direct object. Therefore, you conjugate the verb "manquer" for the person being missed, not the person missing someone.

Tu me manques = I miss you
Je te manque = You miss me

In the passé composé, it works like you'd imagine. The verb "avoir" is also conjugated for the person being missed, not the person missing someone. Therefore, you also have to watch out for direct object agreement.

Tu l'as manqué = He missed you
Tu l'as manquée = She missed you
Il t'a manqué(e) = You missed him (the extra e is there because if "you" is a girl one would put it there)
Vous l'avez manqué(e) = He missed you (all)
Vous les avez manqué(e)s = They missed you (all)
Vous nous avez manqué(e)s = We missed you

Etc etc, it works like that.

To make this easier to understand, I just read this verb with a yoda voice. "Tu m'as manqué" = You, I missed.


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## janpol

"Tu l'as manquée" >>> incorrect, il faut dire : Tu lui as manqué (lui" peut remplacer un nom masculin ou féminin).
"Tu l'as manqué(e)" peut être correct mais avec un autre sens : Pierre a rendez-vous à 15 heures avec Marie au Café de la Plage. A 15H.30, comme elle n'est pas encore arrivée, il s'en va. Marie arrive à 15 H. 35 et demande au serveur s'il a vu Pierre. Celui-ci répond : "Oui, tu l'as manqué (de 5 minutes)".
Vous l'avez manqué >> incorrect. Il faut dire : Vous lui avez manqué,
Vous les avez manqué >> incorrect. Il faut dire : Vous leur avez manqué 
manqu*é* car "lui" et "leur" sont des COI.


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## Nate_J

Ah, merci. Didn't meant to put in false info.

So one uses indirect object pronouns?


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## Glasguensis

Yes - it's really manquer* à *quelqu'un


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## o0ss

Hey people ✌
I'm having trouble translating this sentence to French. The context is someone being nostalgic about the absence of a third party to the detriment of the interlocutor. 
How would you say this naturally in French?
I asked a French friend if_ "Quelqu'un d'autre me manque"_ was ok. He said it was odd, like saying _"Someone else miss me"_. He also said he didn't know what the best translation was so that's why I'm here.

So how would you say *I'm missing someone else* in French?

Any help will be appreciated ☄


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## Maître Capello

Your attempt is actually perfectly correct and natural.  Your friend told you it was odd because he probably got confused by the different turns of phrases. The verb _to miss_ in English and the verb _manquer_ in French are indeed constructed differently:

I'm missing someone else ↔ _Quelqu'un d'autre me manque_
Someone else misses me ↔ _Je manque à quelqu'un d'autre_


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## Monkeyaround

*Elle me manque*

How could the sentence mean " I miss her"? Isn't Elle the subject and "me" means me: she misses me?


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## Bezoard

Please read all the relevant threads :
Search results for query: miss manquer


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## Oddmania

Fundamentally, "_manquer_" means _to be missing from something else_. If a jewel has several gems but one of them is missing, you could say "Une pierre manque à ce bijou". 

So if you consider yourself to be _whole _when "she" is with you, and you feel like a part of you is missing when she's not there, then "Elle me manque" (= _Elle manque à ma personne_) meakes perfect sense.


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