Desire and wishes

고 싶어요 is the main beginner pattern for saying “want to do something” in Korean. It attaches directly to the verb stem.

The structure is Verb stem + 고 싶어요. For example, 가다 becomes 가고 싶어요, meaning “I want to go.” 먹다 becomes 먹고 싶어요, meaning “I want to eat.” 보다 becomes 보고 싶어요, meaning “I want to see / watch.”

This pattern is very natural for talking about wishes, plans, travel, food, study, and daily life. You can say 한국에 가고 싶어요, “I want to go to Korea”, or 김치를 먹고 싶어요, “I want to eat kimchi.”

A key point is that 고 싶어요 is usually used for the speaker’s own desire or in questions about the listener’s desire. For talking about a third person’s desire, Korean often uses a different form later, such as 고 싶어 해요.

To say “do not want to do something”, Korean uses 고 싶지 않아요. This is the negative form of 고 싶어요.

The structure is Verb stem + 고 싶지 않아요. For example, 가고 싶어요 means “I want to go”, while 가고 싶지 않아요 means “I do not want to go.” 먹고 싶어요 becomes 먹고 싶지 않아요, meaning “I do not want to eat.”

This pattern is useful when politely refusing an invitation or explaining your preference. For example, 오늘은 나가고 싶지 않아요 means “I do not want to go out today.”

In casual speech, this becomes 고 싶지 않아. But in ordinary polite conversation, 고 싶지 않아요 is safer, softer, and more appropriate.

To ask what someone wants to do, Korean commonly uses 뭐 하고 싶어요?, meaning “What do you want to do?” This is a very natural question between friends, classmates, coworkers, or family members.

The word 뭐 means “what”. 하다 means “to do”. So 뭐 하고 싶어요? literally means “What do you want to do?”

You can make the question more specific with time words: 주말에 뭐 하고 싶어요? means “What do you want to do on the weekend?” 오늘 뭐 먹고 싶어요? means “What do you want to eat today?”

This pattern is very useful for making plans. It lets you ask about food, travel, study, movies, activities, and preferences in a natural way.

When you want an object, Korean often uses 갖고 싶어요, meaning “want to have”. It comes from 가지다, meaning “to have / possess”.

The pattern is Noun + 을/를 + 갖고 싶어요. For example, 새 가방을 갖고 싶어요 means “I want to have a new bag.” 좋은 컴퓨터를 갖고 싶어요 means “I want to have a good computer.”

Korean can also use 원해요, meaning “want”, but for concrete objects in beginner conversation, 갖고 싶어요 is often clearer and easier to use.

Do not confuse 고 싶어요 with 갖고 싶어요. 가고 싶어요 means “want to go”. 갖고 싶어요 means “want to have”. The pronunciation is different: 가고 versus 갖고.

The desire pattern becomes much more useful when combined with time words and place expressions. You can talk about what you want to do today, this weekend, next week, or in the future.

Useful time words include 오늘 today, 내일 tomorrow, 주말에 on the weekend, 다음 주에 next week, and 나중에 later. For example, 주말에 쉬고 싶어요 means “I want to rest on the weekend.”

You can also combine desire with places: 서울에 가고 싶어요, 집에서 쉬고 싶어요, 도서관에서 공부하고 싶어요. This lets you express both what you want to do and where you want to do it.

In real conversation, Korean often uses this pattern to make plans gently. Instead of giving a direct command, you can say what you want: 오늘은 집에서 쉬고 싶어요, “Today, I want to rest at home.”