modality N5 essential casualpolitewritten
ほしい — want (a thing / someone to do)
ほしい
Builds on て形
Meaning
① want a thing: want (something) — Nがほしい
② want someone to do: want someone to ~ — V-てほしい
Key sentence
① want a thing
新しい靴がほしい。
I want new shoes.
② want someone to do
ちょっと手伝ってほしい。
I want you to help me a little.
Formation
| Attaches to | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun | N + がほしい (conjugates like an i-adjective) | 車がほしい |
| Verb (て-form) | V-て + ほしい | 来てほしい |
Examples
① want a thing
もっと時間がほしい。
I want more time.
② want someone to do
もう少し静かにしてほしい。
I'd like you to be a bit quieter.
When you can't use it
- Like たい, ほしい states the speaker's own want (or asks the listener's). A third person's want uses ほしがっている: ×弟は車がほしい → 弟は車をほしがっている.
Easily confused with
See ほしい in real sentences
Jengo shows ほしい the way you actually meet it: inside real Japanese sentences, so it sticks instead of staying an abstract rule.
Study it in JengoSources Compiled with reference to A Dictionary of Basic Japanese Grammar.