Negation: じゃありません
A は B じゃありません。
A は B じゃありません: “A is not B”. では is more formal, じゃないです more relaxed.
In short
To say “A is not B”, you replace です with じゃありません (or ではありません, more formal). In relaxed speech, you also hear じゃないです.
- わたしは せんせいじゃありません。watashi wa sensei ja arimasenI'm not a teacher.
- これは ペンではありません。kore wa pen de wa arimasenThis isn't a pen.
- やまださんは がくせいじゃないです。yamada-san wa gakusei ja nai desuMr Yamada isn't a student.
The basics
To say one thing isn't another, you keep the same sentence and replace です with じゃありません. Nothing else moves: no extra particle, no negative word at the start of the sentence.
- わたしは せんせいじゃありません。watashi wa sensei ja arimasenI'm not a teacher.
- これは ペンじゃありません。kore wa pen ja arimasenThis isn't a pen.
Three ways to say “it isn't”
じゃ is the spoken contraction of では. The three forms mean exactly the same thing; only the register changes. In careful writing, people prefer ではありません; in speech, じゃありません or じゃないです are the most common.
| Form | Register | When to use it |
|---|---|---|
| ではありません | formal | writing, speeches, formal situations |
| じゃありません | polite | everyday polite conversation |
| じゃないです | polite, relaxed | everyday speech between adults |
- がくせいではありません。gakusei de wa arimasenI'm not a student. (formal)
- がくせいじゃないです。gakusei ja nai desuI'm not a student. (relaxed)
Answering no to a question
It's mostly used to correct or to answer in the negative. You start with いいえ, say what the thing isn't, then often what it is.
- いいえ、にほんじんじゃありません。フランスじんです。iie, nihonjin ja arimasen. furansujin desuNo, I'm not Japanese. I'm French.
- それは わたしの かさじゃありません。sore wa watashi no kasa ja arimasenThat's not my umbrella.
Common mistakes
- Saying “ですじゃありません”: じゃありません replaces です, it isn't added to it.
- Reading では as “de-ha”: here again は is a particle, you say “de wa”.
- Using じゃありません with an い-adjective (たかい, おいしい): they have their own negative, covered later in the course.
5 exercises on this point
Particles to choose, sentences to put back in order, translations: marked straight away, then reviewed at the right time. This JLPT N5 point is on the Chiyoda Line (First words) of the Tokyo subway.