何かしたい
nanika shitai
In Japanese, "I want to do something" is expressed as 何かしたい (nanika shitai).
This phrase is used to express a vague or non-specific desire to engage in an activity without naming the specific activity.
Which one should you use?
While 何かしたい is the basic form, you can use 〜たい in informal speech by dropping the formal ending. To express that you have been thinking about doing something, you can use 〜たいと思っています. If you want to express the desire to try something or see what it is like, use 〜てみたい after a verb in its te-form.
How does it change in a sentence?
Adding desu to the end of nanika shitai makes the phrase polite and suitable for speaking to strangers or superiors. The dictionary form nanika shitai is used in casual conversation with friends or family.
How do you pronounce it?
nanika shitai
Did you know?
- In Japanese, using 〜たい (tai) to describe someone else's desires is often considered rude or impossible because you cannot truly know another person's inner feelings. Instead, you would use a different grammatical structure to describe how someone appears to feel.
- Japanese has a concept called 空気を読む (reading the air). Because of this, people often omit the 何かしたい part of a sentence entirely and use trailing particles like 〜けど… to hint that they want to do something without saying it.
- The suffix 〜たい (tai) functions more like an adjective than a verb in Japanese grammar. This means you conjugate the 'wanting' itself, rather than the action you desire.
Examples in context
- 食べたいです。I want to eat.
- 映画を見たいと思っています。I've been wanting to watch a movie.
- 行きたい。I want to go.
- このレストランに行ってみたい。I want to try going to this restaurant.
- 暇だから、何かしたい。Hima dakara, nanika shitai.I'm free, so I want to do something.
- 週末は何かしたい気分だ。Shuumatsu wa nanika shitai kibun da.I feel like doing something this weekend.
- 退屈だし、何かしたいな。Taikutsu dashi, nanika shitai na.I'm bored, so I want to do something.
Example conversation
Two friends are hanging out at home on a weekend.
- 結衣 Yui陽太、何かしたい？Youta, nanika shitai?Youta, do you want to do something?
- 陽太 Yotaうん、何かしたいけど、何があるかな。Un, nanika shitai kedo, nani ga aru kana.Yeah, I want to do something, but I wonder what's available.
- 結衣 Yuiゲームでもしようか。Geemu demo shiyou ka.Shall we play a game or something?
- 陽太 Yotaいいね。そうしよう！Ii ne. Sou shiyou!Sounds good. Let's do that!
