0088 – Japanese basics (N5-N3) – たい: Want to

grammar

How can I say in Japanese “I want to go to Japan”?

 

Want to phrase

 

When we want to say that wewant to do something, 

 

Verb (masu-form) + たい

Verb (masu-form) + tai

 

 

is typically used in Japanese.

 

So,  for example, we can say

 

わたしは日本へ行きたいです。

Watashi wa nihon e iki tai desu.

I want to go to Japan.

 

To go:

行く: iku

行きます: iki-masu

行きたい: iki-tai

 

See also: How to make Masu-form

 

If the verb needs を (wo) particle

 

When making たい (tai) phrase, one of the important things that you have keep in your mind is

 

When creating a たい(tai) phrase, it’s crucial to consider whether the verb requires the を (wo) particle. If the verb does, then you can use either (ga) or (wo).

 

So for example, 

 

I eat ice cream: 

アイス食べます。

Aisu wo tabe masu.

 

I want to eat ice cream.

アイス食べたい

Aisuwo tabetai.

 

アイス食べたい

Aisuga tabetai.

 

To eat:

  • 食べる: taberu
  • 食べます: tabe-masu
  • 食べたい: tabe-tai

 

Here, the difference between たい phrase with が and を is that

 

  • X: rather neutral
  • X: focusing on X

 

So, for example, 

 

I want to eat ice cream.

アイス食べたい

Aisu wo tabe tai.

  • I simply say that I want to eat ice cream.

 

アイス食べたい

Aisu ga tabe tai.

  • I want to eat nothing other than ice cream.

 

HOWEVER!

With some advanced-level verbs, we canonly use を (wo), especially forverbs that result in a significant outcome.

 

For example, 

 

あいつ殺したい

Aitsu wo koroshi tai.

I want to kill that person.

 

To kill:

  • 殺す: korosu
  • 殺します: koroshi-masu
  • 殺したい: koroshi-tai

 

Here, we can not replace を with が.

The verb 殺す (to kill) gives the object of it a big result, non?

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