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Is the following sentence grammatically correct:

I was wanting to know if I could sent you a link.

It does not sound correct to me.

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    "I was wanting to know" is fine. Use 'send', not 'sent', then it will be OK.
    – Michael Harvey
    Jan 2, 2019 at 18:08
  • @MichaelHarvey: Not "fine" to me. It sounds a bit like a variation on the "Indian English" tendency to say things like I am liking you instead of I like you. So I'm voting to migrate to ELL.
    – FumbleFingers
    Jan 2, 2019 at 18:20
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    Men say "I was wondering if you would like to go dancing" to girls in Britain (or they did when I was a lad); "I was wanting to know how you got on in your exams" would be perfectly idiomatic to describe a recent or current desire.
    – Michael Harvey
    Jan 2, 2019 at 18:59
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    Using a complex construction like I was wondering whether... or I was wanting to know if ... is one way to be polite. Politeness thrives on awkward constructions; it's the equivalent of shuffling your feet.
    – John Lawler
    Jan 2, 2019 at 21:20

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"I was wanting to know" is fine. Use 'send', not 'sent', then it will be OK. Using a complex construction like I was wondering whether... or I was wanting to know if ... is one way to be polite, as a commenter has said.

The construction is considered more polite because it tells the listener about the speaker's desire to know something, without directly asking.

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  • I suppose it's grammatical, but to my American ear, "I was wanting to know if..." sounds very odd. "I wanted to know if..." sounds more natural to me. But then again, "I was wondering if..." sounds perfectly natural, so I'm not sure what the difference is.
    – Nuclear Hoagie
    Jan 3, 2019 at 16:25
  • The "I was... [past continuous form of verb]" construction is often seen in polite or indirect statements or requests. Maybe Americans are more direct than the British.
    – Michael Harvey
    Jan 3, 2019 at 17:10
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I would say no, "I was wanting to know if I could sent you a link." is not grammatically correct.

Less cumbersome:

"I want to know if I can send you a link."

Or if you are referring to an action (such as asking someone previously if they had Internet access, for example) past:

"I wanted to know if I can send you a link."

Example:

you: "Hey do you have Internet access?"

them: "Yes, why do you ask?"

you: "Oh, I just wanted to know if I can send a link to this groovy site about the English language & usage."

:)

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