Learn Japanese
Lesson 100: Expressing Desire: Nouns
In the same way in which to like or dislike is expressed using adjectives in Japanese, to say that you want a thing (a noun) you use the adjective ほしい. Because ほしい is an adjective and not a verb, you use the subject particle が after the desired object. Check out the example sentences below to see how ほしい is used in context.
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| wanted |
ほしい hosii |
| computer |
コンピューター konpyuutaa |
| I want a new computer. |
私は新しいコンピューターがほしいです。 watasi ha atarasii konpyuutaa ga hosii desu. |
| cat |
猫 neko |
| She doesn't want a cat. She likes dogs. |
彼女は猫がほしくないです。犬が好きです。 kanozyo ha neko ga hosiku nai desu. inu ga suki desu. |
| Andrew |
アンドリュー andoryuu |
| Andrew wanted that book. |
アンドリューはその本がほしかったです。 andoryuu ha sono hon ga hosikatta desu. |
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