tomodachi wa atarashii eiga o mitagatte ita node, konya issho ni eigakan e iku.

topic particle

Breakdown of tomodachi wa atarashii eiga o mitagatte ita node, konya issho ni eigakan e iku.

• 行いく: to go
• を: direct object particle

Questions & Answers about tomodachi wa atarashii eiga o mitagatte ita node, konya issho ni eigakan e iku.

Why is 見たがっていた used here instead of 見たい?

見たい is normally used for your own desire: I want to see it.

When you talk about someone else’s apparent desire, Japanese often uses 〜たがる instead. So:

• 見たい = want to see
• 見たがる = show signs of wanting to see

Since 友達 is another person, 見たがっていた is the natural form. It means something like:

• was wanting to see it
• seemed to want to see it

This is a very common point for English speakers, because English does not usually make this distinction.

What does 〜たがる mean exactly?

〜たがる is attached to the ます-stem of a verb and expresses that someone appears to want to do something.

Examples:

• 行きたがる = seem to want to go
• 食べたがる = seem to want to eat
• 見たがる = seem to want to watch/see

So:

• 見る → 見たがる
• 見たがっていた = was showing a desire to watch

It often has the nuance that you know this from their behavior, words, or situation, not from directly feeling it yourself.

Why is it 見たがっていた and not just ?