haru Korean › Grammar › Level 1A › V-고 싶다
V-고 싶다 — wishes — 'I want to …' and 'do you want to …?'
Wishes — 'I want to …' and 'do you want to …?'. Korean grammar for beginner learners — Level 1A, lesson 12: 방학에 여행 가고 싶어요 (I want to travel in the holidays — wishes, conditions and plans).
What it means
-고 싶어요 means 'I want to …'. Take 다 off the verb and add 고 싶어요 — the same for every verb, with or without 받침: 가고 싶어요, 먹고 싶어요. The object keeps 을/를: 바다를 보고 싶어요. To ask what someone wants, use the same form with a rising voice: 뭐 하고 싶어요? For a wish in the past, the tense goes on 싶다: 보고 싶었어요. Use this form for your own wish and to ask the person you are talking to.
Forms
| Pattern | When | Example |
|---|---|---|
| -고 싶어요 | 받침 O | 먹다 + 고 싶어요 → 먹고 싶어요 |
| -고 싶어요 | 받침 X | 가다 + 고 싶어요 → 가고 싶어요 |
Key points
- V-고 싶어요 — take 다 off and add 고 싶어요, the same with or without 받침: 가고 싶어요 · 먹고 싶어요
- For your own wish, and to ask the person you are talking to: 바다를 보고 싶어요. · 뭐 하고 싶어요?
Examples
- 가다 → 가고 싶어요. 보다 → 보고 싶어요. 먹다 → 먹고 싶어요.
- 저는 바다를 보고 싶어요.
- 방학에 뭐 하고 싶어요? — 산에 가고 싶어요.
- 어제 영화를 보고 싶었어요.
Where university textbooks teach it
This point also appears in: Seoul National University Korean 1B, lesson 15; Yonsei University Korean 1-1, lesson 5; Sogang University Korean 1A, lesson 5; Ewha Womans University Korean 1-2, lesson 10; Hanyang University Korean 1-1, lesson 2.
Also in this lesson
- A/V-(으)면 — if · when — a condition, then what happens
- V-(으)ㄹ 거예요 — plans — 'I'm going to …' · a first look, verbs without 받침 only