Japanese with Manga

Thought I would see her face with 〜ようと思う

Grammar Explanation: Thinking of doing with 〜ようと思う

Manga panel from くノ一ツバキの胸の内 showing example of Thought I would see her face with 〜ようと思う.
くノ一ツバキの胸の内 » Volume 3 » Page 107

Seeing Rindou asleep, Sazanka reaches for her mask. Rindou wakens and backs away. Tsubaki asks what they’re doing so early in the morning.

サザンカ:
「リンドウのカオを見(み)ようと思(おも)って…」
“I thought I would see Rindou's face...”
Literal: “Thinking I would see Rindou's face...”

Key Points

1見(み)ようと思(おも)って = “I was thinking I’d try to see / get a look at it”
  • Pattern: [verb volitional form] + と思(おも)う “think / intend to do [verb]”.
  • Here 見(み)ようと思(おも)って explains Sazanka’s immediate intention just before Rindou woke up.
  • The volitional 見(み)よう (from 見(み)る) does not mean simple future here; it shows “I was about to / I was thinking I’d…”
2思(おも)って… trails off as an explanation or excuse
  • “思(おも)って…” leaves the sentence unfinished, like “…that was what I was trying to do”.
  • Ending in て makes the line sound softer and more sheepish than a firm, fully closed と思(おも)った.
3Non-past form, past intention
  • Even though the pattern is based on と思(おも)う, the line refers to what Sazanka was thinking a moment earlier.
  • In conversation, 〜ようと思(おも)って is very natural when giving the reason for an action that was just underway.
  • Learners may expect a fully past 〜ようと思(おも)った, but the て form fits better when the explanation connects directly to what happened next.
4カオ in katakana adds a casual, manga-like feel
  • 顔(かお) is written as カオ for stylistic effect rather than a change in meaning.
  • Katakana can make an everyday word feel more blunt, playful, or visually emphasized in dialogue.

Vocabulary

(To see)

見(み)る means to see or look at something. It can also mean to examine its condition or nature.

(Think)

思う(おもう) means to think, feel, believe, expect, or hope.

See Also

くノ一ツバキの胸の内 © its respective creators. It is used here for educational commentary.