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Elizabethan English, the language of Shakespeare's day, was English so "I love you" was "I love you". However, this usually meant that the person was talking to more than one person. "You are a wonderful audience. I love you." is perfect Elizabethan English.

In Middle English, when speaking to one person, the word thou was used in the nominative case and thee in the accusative where we in modern English would use "you". In respectful language the word "you" came to be used for both in the same way that "vous" is used rather than "tu" in polite French. Eventually the singular forms died out almost completely but they were still sometimes used in Shakespeare's day in conversations between friends and lovers, and when speaking to children and pets.

Therefore a person speaking to another person might say "I love thee", which would have the same meaning as "I love you"

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15y ago

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