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How to Say ‘I wanted’ in French

Je voulais

zhuh voo-leh

[zhuh voo-leh]

🇫🇷 In France: In follow-up emails, je voulais softens what you are doing, so it sounds polite rather than abrupt. French often uses this kind of "I wanted to..." phrasing in professional contact.

Phrase Breakdown

[zhuh]

Subject pronoun for the speaker.

Example

Je voulais vous remercier pour notre discussion.

I wanted to thank you for our discussion.

voulais

[voo-leh]

wanted

Imperfect form of vouloir, often used to sound polite and less direct in emails.

Example

Je voulais vous remercier pour notre discussion.

I wanted to thank you for our discussion.

Guides for French learners

Ordering in French: Cafés, Bakeries and Restaurants (with Menu Vocabulary)How to order in French at a café, a bakery and a restaurant: the phrases, the questions staff ask, and the menu and food vocabulary to understand the answers.Hello in French: Greetings, Good Evening and How to Answer "How Are You?"How to say hello in French, when to switch to good evening, how to ask how are you and what to answer, with tu vs vous and native audio.

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