泣きたい
nakitai
The English phrase "I want to cry" is translated into Japanese as 泣きたい (nakitai).
泣きたい is used to express a strong desire or a feeling of needing to weep. In Japanese, the subject "I" is often omitted from 泣きたい when the speaker is expressing their own feelings.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
The informal way to say "I want to cry" is 泣きたい. To make the phrase polite, you can say 泣きたいです or use the more formal Nakitai to omoimasu. Additionally, Nakitaku narimashita is a polite way to express a similar sentiment, specifically meaning "I've come to want to cry".
How does it change in a sentence?
The past tense of 泣きたい is 泣きたかった, which means "wanted to cry".
How do you pronounce it?
nakitai
Did you know?
- There is a cultural concept called 泣き相撲 or 'crying sumo', where infants are pitted against each other to see who cries first.
- If you use the phrase to describe someone else, such as 'he wants to cry', you must add a suffix like ~garu to the verb to become 泣きたがる. In Japanese, you cannot directly state another person's internal desires as absolute facts.
- If you want to say 'I want to cry' because of something cute, you might use the slangy verb 泣ける (nakeru). Although it literally means 'can cry', it is frequently used to express being overwhelmed by something heart-melting or moving.
Examples in context
- 泣きたいよ。I want to cry.This sentence is useful for practicing the phrase 泣きたい.Tatoeba #8522712 by small_snow, translation #452275 by CM
- 本当に申し訳ありません、泣きたくなりました。I'm truly sorry, I've come to want to cry.
- ごめんなさい、今泣きたい。I'm sorry, but I want to cry right now.
- すごく嬉しい！泣きたくなるよ。I'm so happy! It makes me want to cry.
- 悲しくて、泣きたいです。kanashikute, nakitai desu.I'm so sad, I want to cry.
- 一人で泣きたい気分だ。hitori de nakitai kibun da.I feel like I want to cry alone.
- 1 more sentence on Tatoeba
Sources
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
