Breakdown of kaigairyokou no tame ni atarasii kamera wo kaitai desu.
Questions & Answers about kaigairyokou no tame ni atarasii kamera wo kaitai desu.
〜のために expresses purpose or benefit: “for the sake of ~” / “for ~” / “in order to ~”.
In 海外旅行 の ため に, we have:
- 海外旅行 – overseas travel
- の – connects the noun to what follows (like “of” in English)
- ために – for the sake of / for / in order to
So 海外旅行のために literally is “for the sake of overseas travel,” i.e. “for my trip abroad.”
You could say 海外旅行のために or 海外旅行へ行くために (“in order to go on an overseas trip”).
Just ために by itself usually needs something before it (a noun + の, or a verb in dictionary form) to show “for/in order to.” The の is needed after a noun; it’s not optional in standard Japanese:
- Noun + のために – 海外旅行のために (“for an overseas trip”)
- Verb (dictionary form) + ために – 旅行するために (“in order to travel”)
Japanese often omits the subject when it’s clear from context.
The full sentence could be:
- 私は 海外旅行のために 新しいカメラを 買いたいです。
“I want to buy a new camera for my trip abroad.”
But since:
- the たい-form (買いたい) almost always describes what the speaker wants, and
- in a normal conversation the default subject is “I”
it’s natural to leave 私は out. This makes the sentence sound more natural and less stiff.
を marks the direct object of a verb — what the action is done to.
- カメラを買いたいです。
- カメラ – camera
- を – object marker
- 買いたい – want to buy
So it literally means “(I) want to buy a camera,” where camera is the thing being bought.
In short: X を 買う = “to buy X”.
The differences are:
買いたいです
- Polite, expresses want to buy.
- Literally: “(I) want to buy (it).”
- Used in most polite conversations.
買いたい
- Casual, same meaning as above but plain form.
- Used with friends, family, people below you in status, etc.
買います
- Polite, but it means “(I) will buy / (I) buy”, not “want to.”
- It’s a statement of intention or routine, not desire.
In this sentence, 買いたいです is polite and clearly expresses desire: “I want to buy (a new camera).”
No, that would be incorrect.
- Xに usually marks a destination or target (e.g., パリに行く – “go to Paris”).
- In 海外旅行のために, you are not going to the trip; you are buying the camera for the trip.
You need an expression of purpose, so you use:
- 海外旅行のために 新しいカメラを買いたいです。
“I want to buy a new camera for my trip abroad.”
Using 旅行に directly before 買いたいです would make it sound like you’re buying the camera “to/at the trip,” which doesn’t make sense.
新しいカメラ generally means “a new (to me) camera”. The nuance depends on context:
- Often: “a new camera” as in “I don’t have it yet; I’m going to get a new one.”
- It does not automatically mean brand-new from the store; it could be used or second-hand but new to the speaker.
If you specifically want “another camera” (in addition to one you already have), you might say:
- もう一台カメラを買いたいです。 – “I want to buy another camera.”
If you specifically mean “brand new” (not used):
- 新品のカメラを買いたいです。 – “I want to buy a brand-new camera.”
たい is a grammatical ending (a suffix) that attaches to the verb stem to express desire:
- Take the verb in its stem/masu-stem form:
- 買う (to buy) → 買い (stem)
- Add たい:
- 買い + たい → 買いたい (want to buy)
So たい is not an independent word; it’s an ending that turns a verb into “want to [verb].”
Some more examples:
- 食べる → 食べたい (want to eat)
- 行く → 行きたい (want to go)
- 見る → 見たい (want to see)
In natural Japanese, the たい-form is primarily used for:
- the speaker’s own wants, or
- directly addressed questions like “Do you want to…?”
For other people’s desires, Japanese usually uses 〜たがっている:
- 彼は 新しいカメラを 買いたがっています。
“He wants to buy a new camera.”
So:
- 買いたいです – usually “I want to buy.”
- 買いたがっています – “(he/she/they) wants to buy.”
You will see sentences like 彼は〜買いたいです in textbooks or simplified contexts, but in careful, natural Japanese you’d prefer 〜たがっています to describe someone else’s wants.
です makes the sentence polite. It adds no extra meaning to 買いたい itself; it’s purely a politeness marker in this pattern.
- 買いたい。 – Plain form, casual.
- 買いたいです。 – Polite form, suitable for most everyday situations with people outside your inner circle (clerks, teachers, colleagues, etc.).
Grammar-wise, 買いたい behaves like an i-adjective, and i-adjectives don’t need です, but in polite speech, people almost always add です to such sentences:
- 寒い → 寒いです
- 忙しい → 忙しいです
- 買いたい → 買いたいです
Yes, that word order is also grammatically correct and natural:
- 海外旅行のために 新しいカメラを 買いたいです。
- 新しいカメラを 海外旅行のために 買いたいです。
Both can mean the same thing. Japanese word order is flexible as long as:
- particles (を, に, の, etc.) stay attached to their words, and
- the main verb (買いたいです) comes at the end.
The original order (海外旅行のために at the start) slightly emphasizes the purpose (“For my overseas trip, I want to buy…”).
Putting 新しいカメラを first slightly emphasizes the object (“A new camera—I want to buy it for my trip abroad”). Nuance is subtle.
Yes, 海外旅行 is a compound noun:
- 海外 – overseas, abroad
- 旅行 – trip, travel
Together: 海外旅行 – “overseas trip,” “trip abroad.”
Difference:
- 旅行 alone is just “trip,” with no information about domestic vs. overseas.
- 海外旅行 specifically means traveling outside your country.
Yes, but the nuance changes:
海外旅行のために 新しいカメラを買いたいです。
Focus: purpose – “I want to buy a new camera for my trip abroad / in order to use it on my trip.”海外旅行に行くので 新しいカメラを買いたいです。
Focus: reason – “(Since / because) I’m going on an overseas trip, I want to buy a new camera.”
Both are natural. 〜のために emphasizes goal/purpose; 〜ので emphasizes cause/reason.
If you want to emphasize plan/intention rather than desire, you might use つもり or 予定:
海外旅行のために 新しいカメラを 買うつもりです。
“I plan to buy a new camera for my trip abroad.”海外旅行のために 新しいカメラを 買う予定です。
“I am scheduled / intending to buy a new camera for my trip abroad.”
Compare:
- 買いたいです – “I want to buy…” (desire)
- 買うつもりです – “I plan to buy…” (intention)
- 買う予定です – “I am scheduled / intend to buy…” (a more fixed plan)