Two German sentences can be grammatically correct, describe a similar desire — and still make different communicative choices.

Ich will mit Ihnen sprechen.

Ich möchte mit Ihnen sprechen.

Both can correspond to the Russian idea of “I want to speak with you.” But German does not choose between wollen and möchten simply by replacing one word with another.

In this short video lesson, Tymur Levitin explores a more useful question: What are you actually doing with the sentence?

Are you stating an intention? Expressing a wish? Showing determination? Making a request? Ordering something? Opening an interaction in which another person has to respond?

The choice develops through a chain:

intention → speaker’s position → situation → relationship → form

This is why wollen should not simply be taught as “rude” and möchten as “polite.” Wollen can naturally bring the speaker’s own will, direction or decision to the foreground. Möchten can naturally present the desired action as part of an interaction with another person.

And sometimes the most natural German solution is not to choose between wollen and möchten at all. The situation may be better expressed as a question, request, offer or another communicative construction.

The practical question to take away from this lesson is therefore not:

“Which German word means ‘want’?”

but:

“What am I trying to do with these words in this situation?”

Continue exploring the idea

Read the detailed Russian analysis behind this lesson:

Wollen или möchten? Почему немецкий по-разному выражает то, что по-русски называется «хочу»
https://levitintymur.com/ru/wollen-ili-mochten-pochemu-nemeczkij-po-raznomu-vyrazhaet-to-chto-po-russki-nazyvaetsya-hochu/

For the wider grammatical system, continue with:

German Modal Verbs Made Easy: Können, Müssen, Wollen
https://levitintymur.com/german-modal-verbs-made-easy-konnen-mussen-wollen/

To move from translation toward German-language decisions:

Thinking in German — Stop Translating and Start Speaking Naturally
https://levitintymur.com/thinking-in-german-stop-translating-and-start-speaking-naturally/

For the broader principle behind this approach:

The Language of Decisions
https://levitintymur.com/the-language-of-decisions/

German becomes more useful when grammar is not treated only as a collection of correct forms, but as a set of choices made for particular people, situations and purposes.

Video Lesson №16 — German / Language as Decisions
Tymur Levitin | Levitin Language School