il ne voulait pas

he didn't want to

→ il

phrase Uncommon #18,474

he didn't want to Can be followed by an infinitive or a noun to say what he didn't want. In casual speech, ne is often omitted.

FR: Il ne voulait pas partir.

EN: He didn't want to leave.

Il ne voulait pas être insolent.

He didn’t mean to be insolent.

— Le vent se lève (2006)

Il ne voulait pas me battre.

He didn't want to beat me.

— Senna (2010)

Il ne voulait pas quitter ma mère.

He didn't want to leave my mother.

— Pierrot le Fou (1965)

Il ne voulait pas y aller, moi non plus.

He didn’t want to go, and neither did I.

Il ne voulait pas de nous.

He didn't want us.

— La Femme de ménage (2025)

Il ne voulait pas être le premier.

He didn't want to be the first.

— Star Trek, le film (1979)

Tom m'a dit qu'il ne voulait pas déménager à Boston.

Tom told me he didn't want to move to Boston.

Il ne voulait pas l'annoncer.

He didn't want to announce it.

— Conclave (2024)

Il ne voulait pas croire à la culpabilité de son maître.

He didn’t want to believe his master was guilty.

Il ne voulait pas danser avec moi.

He didn't want to dance with me.

Da-song pleurait, il ne voulait pas rentrer.

Da-song was crying, he didn't want to go home.

— Parasite (2019)

Tom voulait poser une question, mais il ne voulait pas avoir l'air stupide.

Tom wanted to ask a question, but he didn’t want to look stupid.

Il ne voulait pas la heurter.

He didn't want to hurt her feelings.

Il ne voulait pas payer.

He didn't want to pay.

— Lost in Thailand (2012)

Il ne voulait pas qu'on prenne les choses en main.

He didn’t want us to take matters into our own hands.

— Des hommes d'honneur (1992)

Il ne voulait pas se découvrir.

He didn't want to reveal himself.

— Le Secret des poignards volants (2004)

Il ne voulait pas qu'on monte dans cette caisse.

He didn't want us to get into that car.

— Bullet Train (2022)

Il ne voulait pas aller au Japon.

He didn't want to go to Japan.

Je pense qu'il ne voulait pas que tu t'en accuses.

I don't think he wanted you to blame yourself for it.

— Our Times (2015)

Il ne voulait pas partir.

He didn't want to leave.

Il ne voulait pas être battu si facilement par Benetton.

He didn't want to be beaten so easily by Benetton.

— Senna (2010)

Thomas m'a dit qu'il ne voulait pas ça.

Thomas told me he didn't want that.

Il ne voulait pas gagner.

He didn't want to win.

— Crazy Rich Asians (2018)

Il ne voulait pas que vous le voyiez clairement.

He didn’t want you to see him clearly.

— Detective Chinatown (2015)