want
wɑːnt
Want is not a meaning — it is an empty hand leaning toward something
The picture Your hand is empty, and that empty hand leans and stretches toward something over there. Need is what the day cannot run without; want is the hand leaning because it would be nice to have.
Where the picture shows up in want
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the arrow lands on an object
I want a cold drink, please.
aɪ wɑːnt ə koʊld drɪŋk pliːz
Could I get something cold?
An empty hand stretches toward the bottles in the fridge.
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the arrow lands on your own move
I want to speak to the manager.
aɪ wɑːnt tuː spiːk tuː ðə ˈmænɪdʒər
I would like a word with the manager.
A customer at the counter leans her whole body toward the office door.
Want to + verb is the arrow landing on your own next action.
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the arrow lands on the other person
I want you to sign at the bottom.
aɪ wɑːnt juː tuː saɪn æt ðə ˈbɑːtəm
Sign down at the bottom, please.
A finger taps the last line and pushes the pen across into the other hand.
Want you to runs the arrow all the way into someone else's hands.
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the arrow runs from an empty slot
They want someone who can work weekends.
ðeɪ wɑːnt ˈsʌmwʌn huː kæn wɜːrk ˈwiːkendz
They are hiring for weekend shifts.
An empty square on the rota reaches out toward everyone walking past.
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the arrow points at you
You are wanted at the front desk.
juː ɑːr ˈwɑːntɪd æt ðə frʌnt desk
Someone is asking for you up front.
An arrow sent from the front desk arrives and taps you on the back.
Be wanted is the same arrow seen from the end that gets hit.
All of it in one picture
Want is an arrow from an empty hand. Land it on an object and you are asking for the drink; land it on your own next move and you mean to do it; land it on the person across from you and you are asking them to act. Run the arrow from an empty shift toward passing strangers and it is a help-wanted sign; turn that same arrow around to point at you and someone is asking for you.