When would I use "te queiro mucho" instead of "Te amo mucho"?

Question

I dont understand the difference in these two phrases? Is Te Amo reserved for husband and wife while Te queiro used for other family members and friends?

Answer 1

Maybe you could check out this link on About.com, with an extensive forum where native speakers talk about the subject:

http://spanish.about.com/b/2008/02/14/te-quiero-or-te-amo.htm

I'm sure you'll find some good answers there. Sorry I can't personally weigh in on the issue; I'm by no means a native speaker. Hope you find the link helpful. =)

The general consensus seems to be that te quiero is more of a family/friends, liking type of love, and te amo is more of a marriage/couples type of love. The forum is interesting.

Sincerely,

Trevor

Answer 2

There are differing opinions, and this is a very popular question here.

Go here for a thread that seems to follow your line of thought.

But also keep in mind that both of them can be sexual or romantic. And in the case of amar, it is used in the Bible in places one wouldn't expect to be thinking of sexual love. (Such as 1 John 4:7-8).

To me it all comes down to context.

Also note: You've misspelled quiero.