How to tell them apart
たい directly states the speaker's own desire, so 私は行きたい is natural but 彼は行きたい sounds like you can read his mind. For third parties you must use たがる (the がる form of たい), which reports an observed want: 彼は行きたがっている. The split is about whose desire it is—first person takes たい, third person takes たがる.
- たい Use たい when talking about your own desire or asking the listener directly what they want.
- がる Use がる when describing how someone else visibly feels or acts based on an emotion you can observe.
| Grammar point | Meaning | JLPT level |
|---|---|---|
| たい tai | to want to do something | N5 |
| がる garu | Display outward signs of another person's emotions or wants | N4 |
たい tai
to want to do something
たい expresses the speaker's desire to do something, meaning want to. It attaches to the masu-stem of a verb, as in 話したい or 言いたい, and can be followed by こと or なあ to form phrases like したいこと or したいなあ.
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したいことが出来なければ出来ることをしなさい。
When you can't do what you want, you do what you can.
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話したいことがあるのだけど。
I want to talk to you about something.
がる garu
Display outward signs of another person's emotions or wants
がる attaches to the stem of adjectives (欲しい → 欲しがる) and some nouns/phrases to show that someone, usually a third person, is showing signs of a feeling or desire. It is commonly used with 欲しがる to describe what someone else wants.
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そのメロディって、どっかで聞いたことがるよ。
I've already heard that melody somewhere.
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トムんちって、プールがるんだよ。
Tom's house has a swimming pool.
たい and がる are JLPT N5–N4 grammar points that Japanese learners often mix up. This page compares them side by side on meanings, usage and example sentences, so you can tell them apart.