Ti voglio bene (tee voh-llioh bai-nai) is the sweetest of Italian expressions. Unlike its more theatrical sister, ti amo, “ti voglio bene” tends to be more subtle but also more authentic. When you say “ ti voglio bene,” you’re usually honest and really feel what you say, while “ti amo”… well, we all know “ti amo” can be misleading sometimes.
The thing is, “ti voglio bene” is a difficult concept to explain and, thus, to translate in English. It’s commonly rendered with “I love you,” which is also used to translate “ti amo,” but the two don’t mean quite the same in Italian. In fact, in languages like English, French, Spanish and Arabic, the expression “ti voglio bene” doesn’t really exist.
