# Je t'embrasse très fort



## meandmyfrench

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

What does this mean exactly ?


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## edwingill

lots of love


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## Fred-erique

It's "je t'embrasse très fort"..... I give you a big kiss!


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## kariana

"je t embrasse"
= +/- lots of hugs/ kisses / love

you write it to show that you really appreciate a person that is far away....

(you usually write it down at the end of the letter)


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## dark_beauty_dark_love

i could be wrong, but i think that literally it is "i hug/kiss you very hard". nobody would say this in english, though, and so "lots of love/hugs/kisses" is right.


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## jimmyquek

je vous embrasse

is it " I kiss you " or " I embrace you " ?


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## maddief24

Is this appropriate for friends (even ones of the opposite sex or will it be misconstrued)???


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## Smerpy

In my mind it is perfectly appropriate for friends/family/lovers, although it does imply a lot of affection.


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## ianne

Je t'embrasse is OK for very fond friends, even of opposite sex.


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## Fred_C

"Je t'embrasse" (without très fort) is perfectly OK for friends, and does not imply any very strong affection. 
Note : In France, nowadays, friends of the opposite sex do kiss all the time to say hello or goodbye. So it is perfectly normal for opposite sex friends. Girls do also kiss their girl-friends, so it is perfectly normal between girls. However, boy friends mostly shake hands, so do not use this expression if you are a boy writing to a boy.

As for the expression "je t'embrasse très fort", My advice is that it should only be used between intimate girl friends, or members of a close family. (Parents, brothers, sisters.)

Remember that it is useless to add Capital X shaped little crosses at the end of a letter to symbolise kisses, because no one will understand it in France.


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## MadameC

Bonjour a tous...

I understand the meaning of this expression, but I'm not quite sure how I'd translate this in English...any suggestions?

Merci!


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## VixenFox

It's just a way of signing a letter.  We generally write "Love, Jenny."  My French friends write "Je t'embrasse," "Je t'embrasse très fort," "Gros bisous," "Grosses bises."  These are expressions that sound odd when translated into English because we just don't use the words in the same way.  If I picture, "Je t'embrasse très fort," I picture someone holding someone tightly and kissing them hard.  It's easiest to just accept it as "Love," and not try to translate it or picture it!  VixenFox


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## my-own-fantasy

Hi MadameC,
Translated directly into English, " je t'embrasse tres fort" means "I'm hugging you very hard."
I'm not sure if it's an expression or not.
Hope it helps!


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## VixenFox

"I'm hugging you very hard" is absolutely NOT an expression in American English.

Does "embrasser" only mean "to hug" in French, or can it also mean "to kiss?"


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## pieanne

In French, i can think of (at least) 3 meanings for "embrasser"
1. to kiss
2. to hug, put both arms around someone
3. embrasser une carrière = to start a carreer


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## my-own-fantasy

Sorry,
I knew that it wasn't an expression, but that's what it translated to. I've only ever heard the verb "embrasser" in the term to hug.
Sorry for any misunderstandings in my part!


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## zazap

I tend to interpret the word embrasser as meaning "to kiss" in an expression like "je t'embrasse très fort".


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## wildan1

MadameC said:


> Bonjour a tous...
> 
> I understand the meaning of this expression, but I'm not quite sure how I'd translate this in English...any suggestions?
> 
> Merci!


 
if it's at the end of a letter or email, it would be the same as signing _"much love,"--_warm greetings for a friend or relative, but not necessarily in a romantic way


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## pieanne

my-own-fantasy said:


> Sorry,
> I knew that it wasn't an expression, but that's what it translated to. I've only ever heard the verb "embrasser" in the term to hug.
> Sorry for any misunderstandings in my part!


There's no need to be sorry for anything! 
If you look closely at "embrasser" (here, have my glasses), you'll see em/*bras*/ser


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## franglette

salut tout le monde

could someone explain the difference between

je t'embrasse

and 

je t'embrasse très fort

thanks!


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## pieanne

Well, if you write "je t'embrasse" at the end of a letter, it means "kisses"
if you write "... très fort", it's "hugs & kisses"
There's more feeling, strength and enthusiasm in "je t'embrasse très fort"


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## Sitaa

Hi Franglette,

You can compare it as well with "Thank you" and "thank you very much" except you're speaking about kiss and not thanks....

Kisses and lots of kisses


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## franglette

thank you both!


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## wrkrak

Hello,

One of my friend mentioned the following phrase in an email, more specifically at the end of the email.

_"je t'embrasse très fort"

_What exactly does the above expression mean?

Thanks in advance for your help


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## JJC

I hug you very hard. -- like signing "BIG HUGS ...."

embrasser can also mean kiss , but with très fort - "very strong" --- I went with the hug


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## Michel paris

In the modern and informal.

Big Hugs...


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## wildan1

The closest thing you would write in an English letter would be "Much love," 

_Big hugs_ would be more in its register like_ gros bisous_ (big kisses)


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## lionchat

A man I met recently has sent me a text ending with  'Je t'embrasse tres fort'

What does this mean...would it be said between friends or is there something more in it?

Thanks in advance.


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## vincere

It's really depend of your relationship...But it's more use between family members, like father to son...


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## lionchat

I have known him a couple of weeks and met him for a drink twice, there is definetly a sexual attraction there.....is he just being friendly or something more?


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## itka

lionchat said:


> I have known him a couple of weeks and met him for a drink twice, there is definetly a sexual attraction there.....is he just being friendly or something more?



I'd say "something more"


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## VictaHeri

If you'd like a _very _rough translation:
I kiss you hard.
Not very accurate.  Or commonly said in English, for that matter...


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## Padraig

It could also be a big hug -- but a very big one. Yeah, there's something there!

Bonne chance.


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## enJoanet

VictaHeri said:


> If you'd like a _very _rough translation:
> I kiss you hard.
> Not very accurate. Or commonly said in English, for that matter...


 

Yes...very rough indeed!
In that particular case, I'd say that _"fort" _rather means "kind"or "kindly" But both "I kiss you kindly' or "kindly kiss" sound strange in English...

Joan


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## VictaHeri

kiss someone hard?  I'm not up on vocabulary pertaining to romance...


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## wildan1

In AE this is equivalent to signing a note/email: _Much love,_

(This guy is definitely interested in you...)


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## poireau

Bonjour,

What do people mean when they say "Je t'embrasse tres fort?"

Merci!


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## icecreamsoldier

It's like saying "lots of hugs" or "lots of love", used at the end of an email.


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## Teafrog

The UK equivalent, imo, would be "love you loads" or "big hugs" or "warm hugs". This is used between family members or close friends


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## Missrapunzel

Teafrog said:


> The UK equivalent, imo, would be "love you loads" or "big hugs" or "warm hugs". This is used between family members or close friends


Yes and also (especially I would say) between 2 people who are in a relationship!


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## dominixque

big kisses


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## schatje81

*je t'embrasse fort; je t'embrasse très fort; encore et encore des bisous; gros bisous remplis de tendresse

*Hi... I am new to this forum. Can someone help me translate the above? A close friend of mine who is French (a guy), love to include French phrases in his mail to me. I have been using online dictionary to translate most of the words, but sometimes it translates pretty oddly.

Thank you very much in advance.


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## deus585

This is my first post in these forums, but since they have helped me so much, I figured I may be able to help out with something this simple even though my grasp of the language is still very much intermediate.

"I embrace (hug) you tightly; I hug you very tightly; kisses again and again; fat kisses full of tenderness"

Please correct me if I'm wrong, but this is what I've gathered, hope this helps =)


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## cropje_jnr

deus585 said:


> This is my first post in these forums, but since they have helped me so much, I figured I may be able to help out with something this simple even though my grasp of the language is still very much intermediate.
> 
> "I embrace (hug) you tightly; I hug you very tightly; kisses again and again; fat kisses full of tenderness"
> 
> Please correct me if I'm wrong, but this is what I've gathered, hope this helps =)


 
Literally you're quite right - but in effect these phrases all essentially mean "hugs and kisses", usually as a sign-off in a letter or e-mail, for instance.


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## mimi davis

Hello all and thank you for help inadvance!!

My question involves the implication or tone that is meant by using Je t'embrasse très fort and je t'embrasse fort at the end of a letter.  

My (I am female) french friend (male) uses these phrases to close our frequent emails.  There is a history of an affair between us that ended due to geography but we remain close.

If he just being friendly or are these phrases "deeper" in meaning in this context?

Thanks so much


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## Rainbow-vs

Hi Mimi ...

That is a phrase I use very often at the end of my letters or emails, to very good friends that I am very fond of ... male or female.

I don't think it has any special deeper meaning, but only you can know that!! ;-)


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## Léa123

You can see he really cares about you. But as to being friendly or not, it would depend on the tone of the rest of the letter.


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## OLN

Rainbow-vs said:


> That is a phrase I use very often at the end of my letters or emails, to very good friends that I am very fond of ... male or female.


I don't think a guy would very often use "je t'embrasse très fort" when writing to just any of his male friends, and would simply (at the most?) write "je t'embrasse" when writing to a good female friend. 

As a woman, I would take "je t'embrasse très fort" written by a guy at least as a sign of strong affection/bond. It can also be used in a context of empathy/sympathy.
I mean my brother wouldn't say that to me , except _maybe_ if I sound desperately in need of support "Allez, je t'embrasse très fort, courage, ça va aller ".


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## Rainbow-vs

OLN said:


> I don't think a guy would very often use "je t'embrasse très fort" when writing to just any of his male friends, and would simply (at the most?) write "je t'embrasse" when writing to a good female friend.


 
I agree with the guy to guy bit ... but for the rest ...

Well, I am in the South of France, maybe people are more demonstrative here ...


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## mimi davis

thank you all so much!  i appreciate responses and help!
have a great day!
mimi


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