Wanting ~고 싶다: Expressing Desires

Overview

Korean uses ~고 싶다 to express the desire to do something. It attaches to the verb stem and literally means "I want to (do)."

Key distinction: In Korean, you can directly express your own feelings (싶다), but for other people's feelings, you use the "outward appearance" form (싶어하다). This is because you can't truly know what someone else feels — you can only observe it.

Formation: ~고 싶다

Step 1: Take the verb stem

Remove 다 from the dictionary form.

Step 2: Add ~고 싶다

Simply attach ~고 싶다 to the stem. No changes needed regardless of whether the stem ends in a vowel or consonant.

Formation is always the same: stem + 고 싶다. No vowel harmony, no irregulars to worry about.

Conjugating 싶다

The 싶다 part conjugates like a regular adjective:

Negation: Don't Want To

~고 싶지 않다 (Standard negation)

가고 싶지 않아요. (I don't want to go.) 먹고 싶지 않아요. (I don't want to eat.)

~고 싶지 않다 is the standard form. You can also hear:

안 가고 싶어요. (I don't want to go.) — less common but acceptable

Asking About Desires

"What do you want to...?"

뭐 먹고 싶어요? (What do you want to eat?) 뭐 하고 싶어요? (What do you want to do?) 어디 가고 싶어요? (Where do you want to go?) 뭐 보고 싶어요? (What do you want to see?)

"Do you want to...?"

커피 마시고 싶어요? (Do you want to drink coffee?) 영화 보고 싶어요? (Do you want to watch a movie?) 같이 가고 싶어요? (Do you want to go together?)

Third Person: ~고 싶어하다

When expressing what someone else wants, use ~고 싶어하다 instead of ~고 싶다.

Why the distinction?

In Korean, ~고 싶다 expresses an internal feeling. Since you can only know your own feelings directly, it is used for: - 1st person (I want to): Always ~고 싶다 - 2nd person (Do you want to?): ~고 싶다 in questions is fine

For 3rd person (he/she wants to), you observe their desire from the outside, so use ~고 싶어하다:

Conjugation of ~고 싶어하다

싶어하다 conjugates as a regular 하다 verb:

Example sentences

동생이 아이스크림을 먹고 싶어해요. (My younger sibling wants to eat ice cream.)

친구가 한국에 가고 싶어해요. (My friend wants to go to Korea.)

아이가 장난감을 사고 싶어했어요. (The child wanted to buy a toy.)

학생들이 쉬고 싶어해요. (The students want to rest.)

~고 싶다 as a Modifier: ~고 싶은

When you want to modify a noun ("the thing I want to..."), use ~고 싶은 + noun:

가고 싶은 나라가 있어요? (Is there a country you want to go to?)

먹고 싶은 것이 뭐예요? (What is the thing you want to eat?)

보고 싶은 영화가 있어요. (There's a movie I want to see.)

하고 싶은 말이 있어요. (I have something I want to say.)

살고 싶은 도시는 서울이에요. (The city I want to live in is Seoul.)

Special Expression: 보고 싶다 (I Miss You)

보고 싶다 literally means "I want to see (you)," but it is the standard way to say "I miss you" in Korean:

보고 싶어요. (I miss you.) 많이 보고 싶었어요. (I missed you a lot.) 보고 싶을 거예요. (I will miss you.)

This is one of the most emotionally important expressions in Korean.

Past Tense: "I Wanted To"

Use ~고 싶었어요:

어제 집에 가고 싶었어요. (Yesterday I wanted to go home.)

그 영화를 보고 싶었어요. (I wanted to see that movie.)

한국어를 배우고 싶었어요. (I wanted to learn Korean.)

오래전부터 만나고 싶었어요. (I've wanted to meet you for a long time.)

Example Sentences

한국에 가고 싶어요. (I want to go to Korea.)

뭐 하고 싶어요? (What do you want to do?)

피자 먹고 싶어요. (I want to eat pizza.)

오늘은 집에서 쉬고 싶어요. (Today I want to rest at home.)

새 핸드폰을 사고 싶어요. (I want to buy a new phone.)

한국 친구를 만나고 싶어요. (I want to meet Korean friends.)

아무것도 하고 싶지 않아요. (I don't want to do anything.)

여동생이 가수가 되고 싶어해요. (My younger sister wants to become a singer.)

Common Mistakes

Summary

1. ~고 싶다: Attach to verb stem to express "want to." Formation is always the same: stem + 고 싶다.
2. Conjugate 싶다 for tense: 싶어요 (present), 싶었어요 (past), 싶습니다 (formal).
3. ~고 싶어하다: Use for third person desires — "he/she wants to."
4. Negation: ~고 싶지 않다 (don't want to).
5. Modifier form: ~고 싶은 + noun (the thing I want to...).
6. 보고 싶다 = "I miss you" — one of the most important Korean expressions.
7. Past tense ("wanted to"): ~고 싶었어요.