Wanting to do something (khâstan)

Expressing Desire: Wanting to (خواستن)

To express that you want to do something, use the verb خواستن (to want). Unlike باید (must) and شاید (might), خواستن is conjugated to match the subject.

PronounVerbMeaning
منمی‌خواهمI want
تومی‌خواهیYou (sing.) want
اومی‌خواهدHe/she wants
مامی‌خواهیمWe want
شمامی‌خواهیدYou (pl./form.) want
آنهامی‌خواهندThey want

Follow the conjugated form of خواستن with your main verb in the present subjunctive.

Wanting with Compound Verbs

When the main action is a compound verb, only the final verbal part takes the subjunctive form.

Negation and Questions

To say that you do not want to do something, negate خواستن by adding the prefix نـ (e.g., نمی‌خواهم). The main verb stays in the subjunctive.

To ask a question, conjugate خواستن for the person you are asking.