てほしい【～てほしい】

The structure ～てほしい is used to express that you want someone else to do something. While ほしい alone means "to want (a thing)," when attached to the て-form of a verb, it means "I want (someone) to ~."

The person you want to perform the action is marked with the particle に.

Negative forms

There are two ways to express "I want someone not to do something":

～ないでほしい – attaching ほしい to the negative て-form (ないで). This is the more common pattern.

～てほしくない – negating ほしい itself. This can sound slightly stronger or more emphatic.

Past form

To express that you wanted someone to do something, use ～てほしかった.

This often carries a nuance of regret – the action didn't happen and you wished it had.

Who is speaking?

Because ほしい is an adjective that describes an internal desire, the subject (the person who wants) is typically the speaker in statements and the listener in questions.

Nuance

～てほしい is a fairly direct way to express what you want someone to do. In formal or polite situations, softer alternatives like ～ていただきたい or ～てもらいたい may be preferred. However, ～てほしい is perfectly natural among friends, family, or in casual conversation.