Lindsay McMahon
"The English Adventurer"

Native speakers use the verb “to want” in the past tense when we are making a request in the present tense.

For example, you might call a colleague and say ” I wanted to confirm our lunch appointment for today.”

This makes the message a bit more polite and more indirect.

We think it’s also used more commonly for women.

How can you add this speech pattern into your conversations?

Give us some examples in the comments.

  • Badges (1)
  • Badges-1 (1)
  • Badges-2 (1)
  • US_ListenOn_AmazonMusic_button_black_RGB_5X
  • App-Store-Button
  • google-play-badge
  • Badges (1)
  • Badges-1 (1)
  • Badges-2 (1)
  • US_ListenOn_AmazonMusic_button_black_RGB_5X