Skip to content
JLPT N4Expressions

てほしい— Want someone (else) to do something

Combined with the te-form of a verb (てほしい), it expresses the speaker's desire for someone else to perform that action for the speaker. Distinct from 欲しい (to want an object).

Grammar path · 練習

Practice this in the path

A short lesson: the pattern, its sentence anatomy, a quick quiz and a sentence to build.

Pro lessonUNIT 3 · EXPRESSIONS

Structure · 形

[Verb te-form] + ほしい / ほしいです

Examples · 例文

  • 早く来てほしい。

    Hayaku kite hoshii.

    I want you to come quickly.

    来て (come, te-form) + ほしい = want someone to come

  • 先生に説明してほしいです。

    Sensei ni setsumei shite hoshii desu.

    I want the teacher to explain it.

    先生に (to the teacher) + 説明して + ほしい

  • もう少し待ってほしかった。

    Mou sukoshi matte hoshikatta.

    I wanted you to wait a little more.

    待って + ほしかった = past 'wanted someone to'

Usage notes · 注意

  • てほしい = want someone to do (for you); marks the person with に.
  • 欲しい (no verb) = want an object (車が欲しい).
  • Negative: てほしくない = don't want someone to do.
  • More polite: ていただきたい or てもらいたい.
  • てほしい is fairly direct/casual and mainly first-person.

Commonly confused with

The JLPT rarely asks whether you recognise a pattern — it asks which of several similar patterns fits. These are the ones てほしい is tested against.

vs〜たい

たい = 'I want to do it myself' (私が行きたい); てほしい = 'I want someone ELSE to do it' (来てほしい).

vsてもらいたい / ていただきたい

Same core meaning but more polite/indirect; てほしい is the plainer, more direct request of a desire.

vs欲しい (object)

Plain 欲しい wants a thing (marked with が); てほしい wants an action performed by another person.

More expressions

Study Japanese grammar on LenGaki

Everything on this page, ready to study

  • 7,788 JLPT vocabulary words, N5 through N1, with readings and audio (N5 free)
  • 2,057 kanji with on'yomi, kun'yomi and stroke-order practice
  • 445 grammar points with examples and commonly-confused comparisons
  • Full-length N5 and N4 mock exams, timed, with real listening audio (N5 sets 1 and 2 free)