she has wanted

USAGE SUMMARY

'she has wanted' is correct and usable in written English.
You can use it whenever you want to express that someone has desired something for a period of time. For example, "She has wanted to move to a new apartment for years, but she has not been able to find the right place yet."

✓ Grammatically correct

News & Media

Formal & Business

Academia

Human-verified examples from authoritative sources

Exact Expressions

60 human-written examples

She has always done what she has wanted to, in the way she has wanted to.

The New Yorker

That is all she has wanted.

The New York Times - Sports

If anything, she has wanted to get closer.

The New Yorker

It's not that she has wanted for work or variety.

The Guardian - Film

Ms. Lee's family says she has wanted to live all along.

The New York Times

She has wanted to be a nun since she was a small child.

Independent

Frances goes in and buys a red hat that she has wanted for days.

The New Yorker

She realizes that what she has wanted is the previous Gerald, not the creature she has made him into.

The New Yorker

She has wanted a girl like that all her life, but no one will ever give her one.

The New Yorker

Since the seventh grade, Ms. Dreyer said, she has wanted to work on the family farm and produce market.

The New York Times

She has wanted to keep the tragedy to herself, at a considerable cost.

The Guardian

Expert writing Tips

Best practice

Use "she has wanted" to indicate a desire that has persisted over a period of time, connecting a past wish to the present situation. This emphasizes the duration of the desire.

Common error

Avoid using "she wants" if you are referring to a past desire that continues to be relevant. "She wants" suggests a current, immediate desire, not a past one with ongoing implications.

Linguistic Context

The phrase "she has wanted" functions as a verb phrase, specifically in the present perfect tense. It indicates an action or state (wanting) that began in the past and continues to have relevance or effect in the present. This is supported by Ludwig's examples which show this structure in diverse contexts.

Expression frequency: Very common

Frequent in

News & Media

70%

Formal & Business

15%

Academia

10%

Less common in

Science

2%

Encyclopedias

1%

Wiki

2%

Ludwig's WRAP-UP

In summary, "she has wanted" is a grammatically correct and versatile phrase used to express a desire that originated in the past and persists into the present. Ludwig AI confirms its validity. It is most commonly found in news and media contexts, but also appears in formal business and academic writing. When using this phrase, ensure it accurately reflects a continuing desire and avoid using simple past or present tenses if the desire is ongoing. Consider related phrases like "she desired" or "she yearned for" for slight variations in meaning.

More alternative expressions

Phrases that express similar concepts, ordered by semantic similarity:

she has been desiring

Uses the present perfect continuous tense to emphasize the ongoing nature of the desire.

she desired

Replaces "has wanted" with a simple past tense verb, focusing on a past desire.

she yearned for

Emphasizes a deep longing or persistent desire for something.

she longed for

Similar to "yearned for", highlighting a strong and often wistful desire.

she had a desire

Expresses the wanting as a possession of a desire.

it was her wish

Shifts the focus to the wish itself, rather than her act of wanting.

her goal has been

Focuses on the goal and its persistence over time.

she aspired to

Highlights an ambition or goal that she aimed to achieve.

she aimed to

Indicates a goal or intention that she was working towards.

her ambition was

Focuses on ambition, indicating a strong drive towards a specific goal.

FAQs

How can I use "she has wanted" in a sentence?

Use "she has wanted" to describe a desire that began in the past and continues to be relevant in the present. For example, "She has wanted to travel to Europe since she was a child."

What are some alternatives to "she has wanted"?

You can use phrases like "she desired", "she yearned for", or "she longed for" depending on the specific nuance you want to convey.

Is it correct to say "she has wanting" instead of "she has wanted"?

No, "she has wanting" is grammatically incorrect. The correct form is "she has wanted", which uses the past participle of the verb "to want".

What's the difference between "she wanted" and "she has wanted"?

"She wanted" refers to a desire in the past that may or may not continue to the present. "She has wanted" indicates a desire that started in the past and still exists now.