愛 vs 恋 ... they both mean love, so can Ai (愛) or (恋) be used wherever love (Ai) is in a… - Feed Post by ichirochan
愛 vs 恋 ... they both mean love, so can Ai (愛) or (恋) be used wherever love (Ai) is in a word?
posted by ichirochan
Comments 23
I don't really know much about love, but I think 愛 is supposed to be a stronger love.
Using the definitions I found on Jisho.org
愛 is more generic love, like for friends, family members, etc while 恋 is (romantic) love, the one you'd use for a girlfriend, boyfriend, etc.
You can still use 愛 for a lover, but you wouldn't use it for a relative or someone that is just a friend, at least thats the way I see it.- But I've heard 愛 used for a family member. The most prominent example I can remember right now would be from Naruto Shippuden when Itachi was disappearing and told Sasuke that no matter what he does, he will always love him. He used 愛 there if I remember correctly and I don't think he wanted to bone Sasuke.
And by the way, now that I've reread your comment, you are kind of contradicting yourself there, Arbalasquide. - Ah, my bad meant "You can still use 愛 for a lover, but you wouldn't use 恋 for a relative or someone that is just a friend..." Thanks for noticing
- I guess it depends if you are into incest.
lol
No
Echoing what's already been said: Yes, from what I've heard 愛 could potentially be used for anyone you have a deep relationship (family, lover, etc.), and 恋 seems to be for lovers (if it helps, 恋人(koibito) means lover, the kanji are literally "love" and "person").
However, in Japan you would almost never hear someone use 愛 (as in 愛してる, meaning "I love you"). Apparently, it's only ever used for something like a proposal, as it has carries a huge weight in meaning. Unlike in English where you hear "I love you" or "I love my mom" or "I love my family" thrown around all the time.- "I love my water bottle" has a lot more strength behind it if you say it in Japanese.
私は私のウォーターボトルが愛している。 - Lol that's just 好き or 大好き
- Unless you want to marry your water bottle...
- I know, I was trying to make a joke about the low value of the word "love" in western cultures.
どうもありがとう！- I figured, just trying to inform those reading this post ;)
When talking about love for friends and family most Japanese will use the word 大好き- For some reason 大好き always sounds really childish to me. Like a childish form of love. Even when I know that they are serious about it.
- So I have an official answer from my wife. 愛 is a very deep love that typically is reserved for married couples. 恋 is lighter and can be use with those who are dating 恋人 but carries the implication that the love can be easily shattered. My wife got jokingly upset that I did not know what love was before getting married haha
Lol shirokitsune. :D
Now you can ask her to teach you what the word with those two kanji (恋 + 愛) put together means. ^^
恋愛＝れんあい I've heard it several times but, is it a stronger word than 愛 or weaker?- (n,vs,adj-no) love/love-making/passion/emotion/affections/(P)
- Less about being in love but more about falling in love
This thread is wonderful.- I "love" it.
