ラーメンが食べたい
ramen ga tabetai
In Japanese, "I want ramen" is said as ラーメンが食べたい (ramen ga tabetai).
This phrase is used to express a desire to eat ramen.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
To make the sentence polite and suitable for speaking to strangers or superiors, you can add です to the end, resulting in ラーメンが食べたいです. For casual, informal situations, you might use ラーメンが食べたいよ to add emphasis with the particle よ or add んだ to the end of a similar construction like ラーメンが欲しいんだ to add emphasis in informal conversation.
How does it change in a sentence?
The particle が (ga) is used here to mark ramen as the object of your desire, though it is also common in modern Japanese to use を (wo) instead to mark ramen as the direct object, as seen in ラーメンを食べたい.
How do you pronounce it?
ramen ga tabetai
Did you know?
- In Japan, it is common and acceptable to make loud slurping sounds when eating the noodles you wanted, as this is seen as a sign that the meal is delicious.
- While ラーメン is a Japanese staple, the word is a loanword from the Chinese lāmiàn, which describes 'pulled noodles'.
- While 'ramen' is a loanword, it is written in Katakana, a script specifically used for foreign-derived words. This visually signals to a Japanese reader that the food originated outside of traditional Japanese cuisine.
Examples in context
- ラーメンが食べたいです。Ramen ga tabetai desu.I want to eat ramen.
- 今日はラーメンが食べたい気分だ。Kyou wa ramen ga tabetai kibun da.I feel like eating ramen today.
- どうしてもラーメンが食べたい！Doushitemo ramen ga tabetai!I really want to eat ramen!
Example conversation
Two friends are walking in the city and deciding on lunch.
- 結衣 Yuiお腹が空いたね。ラーメンが食べたいな。Onaka ga suita ne. Ramen ga tabetai na.I'm hungry. I want to eat ramen.
- 大翔 Hirotoいいよ、近くに美味しい店があるよ。Ii yo, chikaku ni oishii mise ga aru yo.Sure, there's a delicious shop nearby.
- 結衣 Yui本当？大翔くん、教えてくれてありがとう！Hontou? Hiroto-kun, oshiete kurete arigatou!Really? Hiroto, thank you for telling me!
- 大翔 Hirotoどういたしまして。行こうか。Dou itashimashite. Ikou ka.You're welcome. Shall we go?
