Saying what you want to do: 〜たい
Verb (stem) + たいです
Stem + たいです = I want to. Conjugates like an い-adjective: たくない, たかった.
In short
You replace ます with たい to say “I want to do”. たべます → たべたい (I want to eat). The sentence ends with です to stay polite. Negative: たくないです.
- 日本へ いきたいです。nihon e ikitai desuI want to go to Japan.
- すしを たべたいです。sushi o tabetai desuI want to eat sushi.
- 今日は 見たくないです。kyō wa mitaku nai desuI don't want to watch it today.
The basics
To say you feel like doing something, you replace ます with たい, then add です. たい then conjugates like an い-adjective.
| Form | Meaning | |
|---|---|---|
| want | 食べたいです | I want to eat |
| don't want | 食べたくないです | I don't want to eat |
| past | 食べたかったです | I wanted to eat |
In practice
The object can take を or が: すしを 食べたい or すしが 食べたい. Both are correct; が puts a little more weight on the thing you want.
- 日本へ 行きたいです。nihon e ikitai desuI want to go to Japan.
- きょうは なにも したくないです。kyō wa nani mo shitaku nai desuI don't feel like doing anything today.
- なにが 食べたいですか。nani ga tabetai desu kaWhat do you feel like eating?
Only for yourself
たい expresses the speaker's own wish, or asks the other person. To say what a third person wants, Japanese uses other forms (たがっています, covered at N4). At N5, remember: たい = me, or “and you?”.
With a superior, “～たいですか” can sound blunt: to suggest something, prefer ～ませんか (coming up next).
Common mistakes
- Saying 行きますたい: たい replaces ます, 行きたい.
- Conjugating たい like a noun: the negative is たくない, not たいじゃありません.
- Mixing up たい (doing) and ほしい (having a thing): すしが 食べたい but くるまが ほしい.
5 exercises on this point
Particles to choose, sentences to put back in order, translations: marked straight away, then reviewed at the right time. This JLPT N5 point is on the Asakusa Line (Actions) of the Tokyo subway.