I dont know if I'm having a moment, but I cant work out how to say "I wanted..." ie past tense My initial thought is "Ba mhaith liom" ba being the past of is, but that also mean "I would like". Any takers?

I may be wrong, but I would assume you'd use "ba mhaith liom" and allow context to tell your readers/hearers whether you're saying "I wanted" or "I would like."

Wait for more on that.

Redwolf

thanks, thats what I was thinking, but I had a nagging voice telling me it couldn't be right

It might well depend on the context (i.e. the rest of the sentence) but one common way to express the idea would be: "bhí mé ag iarraidh..."
There are more, of course.

Wait for corrections/improvements.

Yes that's right, in theory, "ba mhaith liom" could mean both "I would like" and "I wanted", but actually I think you'd only use "ba mhaith liom" to say "I would like", and when you want to say "I wanted", you're rather use "bhí mé ag iarraidh" or other expressions like that.

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Is fearr Gaeilg na Gaeltaċta ná Gaeilg ar biṫ eile
Agus is í Gaeilg Ġaoṫ Doḃair is binne

Of course a lot depends on context, but a couple of other ways would be:
theastaigh uaim or bhí uaim as in "bhí dúshlán nua uaim - I wanted a new challenge.
Séamus

Thanks all bhí sé sin an áisiúil

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It is recommended that you always wait for three to agree on a translation.
I speak Connemara Irish, and my input will often reflect that.
I will do an mp3 file on request for short translations.
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How about using "ba mhaith liom" in the context of "I liked/used to like"? As in:

"When I was young I liked peanut butter sandwiches, but now I can't stand them."

I would probably normally use the past tense of "taitin (le)," but could a case be made for "ba mhaith liom" as well?

Redwolf