This is the 420th most frequent French word.
voulait
"Voulait" means "wanted" (imperfect tense of "vouloir").
In this sentence, 'voulait' is used in the imparfait tense to express a past desire of the subject.
Elle voulait aller au marché.
She wanted to go to the market.
Here, 'voulait' is used to describe the intentions in a past hypothetical situation.
Il semblait qu'il voulait parler avec toi.
It seemed that he wanted to talk with you.
'Voulait' is used to reflect a long-standing past aspiration of the speaker.