N5 · Wanting and intending
Wanting to do: たい
the たい-form
たい on the ます-stem says that you want to do something, and it conjugates like an i-adjective.
Take the ます-form, remove ます, and add たい: 行きます becomes 行きたい, "want to go"; 食べます becomes 食べたい. The result is an i-adjective and conjugates like one: 行きたくない, 行きたかった, 行きたくなかった, and in polite style 行きたいです.
The object can be marked with を or with が: すしが食べたい and すしを食べたい are both correct. が puts a little more weight on the thing wanted; in longer sentences を is more common. Every other particle stays as it was: 日本に行きたい.
たい expresses the speaker's own desire. In a statement it is about "I"; in a question, about "you": 何が食べたいですか. Saying 田中さんは行きたいです sounds as if you could read Mr Tanaka's mind. For other people Japanese says what they said or showed: 行きたいと言っています, 行きたがっています.
Two more things catch English speakers. Asking a superior or a guest 飲みたいですか, "do you want a drink?", is direct to the point of rudeness; an offer is made with いかがですか or 〜ませんか. And たい is only for actions: "I want a car" needs ほしい.
The form
stem (regular) stem (irregular) ending
| want to go | 行きたい |
| don't want to go | 行きたくない |
| wanted to go | 行きたかった |
| didn't want to go | 行きたくなかった |
| want to eat (polite) | 食べたいです |
| want to come | 来たい |
| want to do | したい |
The rules one by one
Add たい to the ます-stem.
夏休みに海へ行きたいです。I want to go to the seaside in the summer holidays.
The たい-form conjugates like an i-adjective.
子どものころ、医者になりたかったです。As a child I wanted to be a doctor.
The object can take を or が; other particles stay as they are.
冷たい水が飲みたいです。I want to drink some cold water.
In a statement たい describes the speaker; in a question, the listener.
週末は何がしたいですか。What do you want to do at the weekend?
A closer look
Why Japanese will not say what others want
The rule is not special to たい. Words for feelings and sensations — うれしい, 寂しい, 痛い — work the same way: as a plain statement they describe the speaker. About anybody else, Japanese adds a sign that the feeling is observed or reported: そう, がる, と言っています, みたい.
In English this distinction exists only as tact. In Japanese it is part of the grammar, and a learner who ignores it does not sound rude so much as strangely certain about other people.
Exceptions and special cases (1)
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たい stands in a clause that describes a noun
it can refer to anyone: 行きたい人, "people who want to go".
参加したい人は名前を書いてください。Anyone who wants to take part, please write your name.
The clause sorts people by a wish rather than claiming to know what one particular person feels.
How to spot it
- 〜たい
- 〜たいです
- 〜たくない
- 〜たかった
Example sentences
日本の古いお寺が見たいです。I want to see old Japanese temples.
今日は疲れたので、早く寝たいです。I am tired today, so I want to go to bed early.
雨の日は外に出たくないです。I don't want to go out on rainy days.
将来、何になりたいですか。What do you want to be in the future?
もう一度あの店のラーメンを食べたいな。I'd like to eat the ramen at that place again.
本当は行きたかったけど、時間がありませんでした。I really wanted to go, but I didn't have time.
7 more example sentences
温泉に入りたいです。I want to have a bath in a hot spring.
新しいパソコンを買いたいと思っています。I'm thinking of buying a new computer.
今はだれにも会いたくないです。I don't want to see anybody right now.
冬は北海道でスキーがしたいです。In winter I want to go skiing in Hokkaido.
子どものころ、犬が飼いたかったです。As a child I wanted to have a dog.
日本語を勉強したい人が増えています。More and more people want to study Japanese.
何か飲みたいものはありますか。Is there anything you would like to drink?
Worth knowing (2)
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A softer wish with なあ
In speech たい is often followed by な or なあ, which turns the wish into something said half to yourself: a longing rather than an announcement.
いつかパリに住みたいなあ。I'd love to live in Paris one day.
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With a する-verb
A verb made with する takes したい: 結婚したい, 留学したい. The noun part does not change.
来年、結婚したいです。I want to get married next year.
The trap English speakers fall into
Watch out
English "he wants" is an ordinary statement. In Japanese たい reports a feeling from the inside, and only the speaker is inside their own head. About somebody else, say what they told you (たいと言っています) or what they show (たがっています).
たい is for your own wishes: say it about yourself, ask with it, but do not state it about others.
Your turn
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