Volere (to Want) in Italian

In Brief

Volere means “to want.” In the present tense it is irregular: voglio, vuoi, vuole, vogliamo, volete, vogliono. Put it directly before an infinitive (the basic verb form, such as andare “to go”) or use it with a noun: Voglio partire (“I want to leave”); Voglio un caffè (“I want a coffee”).

Overview

Volere is one of the most useful Italian modal verbs. A modal verb adds an idea such as wanting, being able, or having to do something to another verb. You will meet volere at A1 because it lets you express wishes and intentions immediately: what you want, where you want to go, and what you want to do.

The verb has two basic patterns. With a noun (a word for a person, thing, place, or idea), volere means wanting that thing: Voglio una pizza. With another verb, it is followed by the infinitive: Voglio mangiare. Unlike English, Italian does not insert a word equivalent to “to” between the two verbs.

The beginner rule is straightforward, but tone matters. A direct form such as Voglio... is grammatically correct, yet it may sound demanding when ordering or asking someone for something. Italian often uses vorrei (“I would like”) for a courteous request. Learn the present forms first, then treat vorrei as a useful polite expression.

How It Works

Present-tense forms

Volere is irregular, so its forms cannot be built simply by adding the regular endings to the stem. Learn the six forms as a set.

Person	Italian form	English meaning
io	voglio	I want
tu	vuoi	you want (one person, informal)
lui / lei / Lei	vuole	he / she wants; you want (formal)
noi	vogliamo	we want
voi	volete	you want (plural)
loro	vogliono	they want

Italian usually leaves out the subject pronoun (the word showing who performs the action) because the verb ending already identifies the person. Voglio restare normally means “I want to stay”; you do not need io. State the pronoun for contrast or emphasis: Io voglio restare, ma loro vogliono partire (“I want to stay, but they want to leave”).

Pay attention to spelling as well as sound. The forms with gli are voglio, vogliamo, and vogliono. The other three forms use the stem vuol-: vuoi, vuole, volete.

Pattern 1: volere + noun

Use a noun or noun phrase after volere when someone wants a person, thing, or result.

• Voglio un bicchiere d’acqua. — “I want a glass of water.”
• Vuoi altro pane? — “Do you want more bread?”
• Vogliamo una risposta. — “We want an answer.”

Here the noun is the direct object (the person or thing directly wanted). Italian does not normally put a preposition between volere and this object: Voglio un caffè, not Voglio di un caffè.

Articles still follow their normal rules. A singular countable item commonly has un, uno, or una: un panino, uno scontrino, una camera. In some contexts no article is needed, particularly with broad or uncountable ideas: Voglio pace (“I want peace”).

Pattern 2: volere + infinitive

When the desired action has the same subject as volere, put the infinitive directly after the conjugated form.

subject + form of volere + infinitive

• Voglio dormire. — I want to sleep.
• Vuoi uscire? — Do you want to go out?
• Vogliamo imparare l’italiano. — We want to learn Italian.

Only volere changes for the subject. The second verb remains in the infinitive: voglio parlare, vuoi parlare, vogliono parlare. Do not conjugate both verbs.

English uses “want to go,” but Italian uses no equivalent of “to” here: volere + andare, not volere di andare or volere a andare.

Questions and negatives

Italian can make a yes-or-no question simply through intonation in speech and a question mark in writing. The word order often stays the same:

• Vuoi venire? — Do you want to come?
• Volete ordinare? — Do you want to order?

Put non immediately before the conjugated verb to make the sentence negative:

• Non voglio uscire. — I do not want to go out.
• Non vogliono il dolce. — They do not want dessert.

To ask what someone wants, use che cosa, cosa, or che in everyday questions: Che cosa vuoi?, Cosa vuoi?, or Che vuoi? The last version may sound especially direct depending on tone and context.

Informal and formal “you”

Use vuoi with one person addressed as tu. Use volete with two or more people. With formal singular Lei, use the third-person singular form vuole:

• Vuoi sederti, Marco? — Do you want to sit down, Marco?
• Volete entrare? — Do you all want to come in?
• Vuole parlare con il direttore, signora? — Would you like to speak to the manager, ma’am?

Because vuole also means “he wants” or “she wants,” context identifies the subject. In writing, capitalising formal Lei can make the distinction visible, although lowercase lei is also common in modern usage.

Examples in Context

Italian	English	Note
Voglio un caffè.	I want a coffee.	Volere + noun
Vuoi venire?	Do you want to come?	Informal singular question
Vuole parlare con Lei.	He or she wants to speak with you.	Lei is formal “you” after con
Vogliamo andare al cinema.	We want to go to the cinema.	Volere + infinitive
I bambini vogliono un gelato.	The children want an ice cream.	Plural subject
Non voglio fare tardi.	I don’t want to be late.	Non comes before voglio
Cosa volete mangiare?	What do you all want to eat?	Plural “you”
Marta vuole studiare medicina.	Marta wants to study medicine.	The subject of both verbs is Marta
Io voglio restare, ma Paolo vuole partire.	I want to stay, but Paolo wants to leave.	Io marks a contrast
Vuoi ancora un po’ d’acqua?	Do you want a little more water?	Natural offer among people using tu
Signora, vuole accomodarsi?	Ma’am, would you like to take a seat?	Formal Lei form; English naturally uses “would like”
Vorrei prenotare un tavolo per due.	I would like to book a table for two.	Polite request with vorrei

Common Mistakes

Using a regular present-tense form

• Wrong: Io volo un caffè.
• Right: Io voglio un caffè.
• Why: Volere is irregular. Volo belongs to volare (“to fly”): io volo means “I fly.”

Adding a preposition before the infinitive

• Wrong: Vogliamo di andare a casa.
• Right: Vogliamo andare a casa.
• Why: Italian uses the infinitive directly after volere. English “want to go” does not map word for word onto Italian.

Conjugating both verbs

• Wrong: Lei vuole parla italiano.
• Right: Lei vuole parlare italiano.
• Why: Conjugate volere; leave the following action in the infinitive.

Mixing up singular and plural “you”

• Wrong: Tu volete venire?
• Right: Tu vuoi venire?
• Why: Tu takes vuoi. Use volete for plural voi: Voi volete venire?

Using voglio as a polite request in every situation

• Too direct in many service situations: Voglio una camera per due notti.
• More courteous: Vorrei una camera per due notti.
• Why: Voglio states a strong desire. It is not grammatically wrong, but vorrei (“I would like”) generally sounds more polite when requesting something from a stranger.

Copying English pronoun use

• Unnatural without a contrast: Io voglio andare e io voglio vedere il museo.
• Natural: Voglio andare e voglio vedere il museo.
• Why: Italian normally drops subject pronouns when the verb form makes the subject clear. Keep io when you need emphasis or contrast.

Usage Notes

Desire, intention, and willingness

Volere can express more than a passing wish. Depending on context, it may indicate a plan or firm intention: Quest’anno voglio imparare bene l’italiano means both “This year I want to learn Italian well” and, in context, “I intend to learn Italian well.” A negative can express refusal: Non voglio farlo may mean “I don’t want to do it” or “I refuse to do it.” Tone determines how forceful it sounds.

Offers and invitations

Questions with vuoi and volete are natural for offers and invitations:

• Vuoi un caffè? — Would you like a coffee?
• Volete venire con noi? — Would you like to come with us?

English often translates these with “would you like,” even though Italian uses the present tense. In a more formal interaction, desidera? (“would you like?”) or a question with vuole may be heard: Desidera altro?; Vuole altro?

A direct statement is not automatically rude

Do not replace every instance of voglio with vorrei. Voglio cambiare lavoro is a normal statement of personal intention. The possible bluntness arises mainly when your words function as a demand addressed to someone else. Context, voice, and additions such as per favore all affect the tone.

Beyond the Basics / Advanced Use

You do not need to master the following uses at A1, but they explain forms you will meet later.

Vorrei and the conditional

Vorrei is the first-person singular of the present conditional (a verb form often used for hypothetical or softened statements). It literally corresponds to “I would want,” but idiomatic English normally uses “I would like.” It is extremely common in cafés, hotels, shops, and telephone calls: Vorrei pagare; Vorrei un’informazione.

Other conditional forms include vorresti (“you would like,” informal), vorrebbe (“he/she would like” or formal “you would like”), and vorremmo (“we would like”). At beginner level, it is practical to learn vorrei as a ready-made polite form before studying the full conditional.

When different people perform the two actions

The simple infinitive pattern works when the person who wants is also the person who performs the next action: Voglio partire (“I want to leave”). If one person wants someone else to act, Italian commonly uses che + subjunctive (the subjunctive is a verb form used in certain dependent clauses):

• Voglio che tu venga. — I want you to come.
• Vogliamo che tutto sia pronto. — We want everything to be ready.

This structure belongs to a later level. Avoid copying the English pattern as Voglio tu venire.

Voler bene is not simply “to want well”

The fixed expression volere bene a qualcuno means “to love” or “to care about someone,” usually affectionately rather than romantically:

• Voglio bene a mia sorella. — I love my sister.
• Ti voglio bene. — I love you / I care about you.

The person is introduced by a, or represented by an indirect-object pronoun such as ti. This is a separate expression from wanting a thing.

Volerci: “to be needed” or “to take”

The pronominal form volerci often means that something is needed or that an amount of time is required:

• Ci vuole pazienza. — Patience is needed.
• Ci vogliono due ore. — It takes two hours.

The verb agrees with what is needed: singular ci vuole, plural ci vogliono. Treat this as its own construction rather than trying to translate each piece literally.

Past forms and modal verbs

The past participle (the form used in compound past tenses) is voluto: Ho voluto provare (“I wanted/chose to try”). With a modal followed by another infinitive, auxiliary choice and pronoun placement can become more complex, especially with verbs that normally use essere. That topic is best learned together with the passato prossimo rather than folded into the A1 present-tense rule.

Practice Tips

1. Learn the forms in three sound groups: voglio–vogliamo–vogliono, vuoi–vuole–volete. Then cover the table and produce a form from a subject at random.
2. Build two kinds of sentence: make six examples with things you want (Voglio un...) and six with actions (Voglio...-are/-ere/-ire). This fixes the difference between a noun and an infinitive.
3. Practise the register contrast aloud: order the same item with Voglio un caffè and Vorrei un caffè. Use the first to state a desire and the second as your default polite request.

Related Concepts

• Prerequisite: Regular -ARE Verbs — provides the basic idea of changing a verb form to match its subject, even though volere itself is irregular.