Voulait (en. Wanted)

/vulɛ/

Meaning & Definition

EnglishFrench

verb

To explain a desire or an intention in the past.

He wanted to go to the movies last night.

Il voulait aller au cinéma hier soir.

To express an unmet request or wish.

She wanted a new phone, but she couldn't buy it.

Elle voulait un nouveau téléphone, mais elle n'a pas pu l'acheter.

To indicate a will that is not fulfilled.

We wanted to leave earlier, but we had to wait.

Nous voulions quitter plus tôt, mais nous avons dû attendre.

Comes from the verb 'vouloir' from Old French.

I wanted to say

to express a clarification or a correction

je voulais dire

what he wanted

to refer to a person's intentions

ce qu'il voulait

if we wanted

to express a possibility or a hypothesis

si on voulait

to want

to express a desire or an intention

vouloir

would like

conditional form of to want

voudrais

wanting

present participle of the verb to want

voulant

To want something

He wants to go out tonight instead of staying home.

Il veut sortir ce soir au lieu de rester à la maison.

To strongly wish

She would like him to be there for her.

Elle voudrait qu'il soit là pour elle.