Negation¶

Quick Reference

Type	Pattern	Example	Usage
Short Negation	안 + Verb	안 가요	Simple, common
Long Negation	Verb stem + -지 않다	가지 않아요	Formal, emphatic
Cannot (Inability)	못 + Verb	못 가요	Physical inability
Cannot (Long Form)	Verb stem + -지 못하다	가지 못해요	Formal inability

Types of Negation in Korean¶

Korean has distinct ways to express different types of negation: 1. Simple negation (don't/doesn't) 2. Inability (can't/unable to)

Each type has both a short form and a long form.

안 (Short Form) - Simple Negation¶

The most common way to negate verbs. Place 안 directly before the verb.

Formation¶

Pattern: 안 + Verb

Basic Examples¶

Positive	Negative	Translation
가요	안 가요	don't go
먹어요	안 먹어요	don't eat
자요	안 자요	don't sleep
읽어요	안 읽어요	don't read
봐요	안 봐요	don't see
와요	안 와요	don't come
해요	안 해요	don't do
공부해요	안 공부해요	don't study

With Different Tenses¶

Present: - 안 가요 (don't go) - 안 먹어요 (don't eat)

Past: - 안 갔어요 (didn't go) - 안 먹었어요 (didn't eat)

Future: - 안 갈 거예요 (won't go) - 안 먹을 거예요 (won't eat)

Usage Examples¶

저는 커피를 안 마셔요. (I don't drink coffee.)
오늘 학교에 안 가요. (I'm not going to school today.)
어제 숙제를 안 했어요. (I didn't do homework yesterday.)
그 영화를 안 봤어요. (I didn't watch that movie.)
내일 안 올 거예요. (I won't come tomorrow.)
한국어가 안 어려워요. (Korean is not difficult.)

-지 않다 (Long Form) - Simple Negation¶

More formal and emphatic than 안. Attach -지 않다 to the verb stem.

Formation¶

Pattern: Verb stem + -지 않다 Conjugate 않다: 않아요 (informal polite), 않습니다 (formal polite)

Conjugation Table¶

Verb	Stem	Long Negation	Translation
가다	가	가지 않아요	don't go
먹다	먹	먹지 않아요	don't eat
자다	자	자지 않아요	don't sleep
읽다	읽	읽지 않아요	don't read
하다	하	하지 않아요	don't do
공부하다	공부하	공부하지 않아요	don't study
오다	오	오지 않아요	don't come
보다	보	보지 않아요	don't see

With Different Tenses¶

Present: - 가지 않아요 (don't go) - 먹지 않아요 (don't eat)

Past: Add past tense to 않다 - 가지 않았어요 (didn't go) - 먹지 않았어요 (didn't eat)

Future: - 가지 않을 거예요 (won't go) - 먹지 않을 거예요 (won't eat)

Usage Examples¶

저는 거짓말하지 않아요. (I don't lie.)
그 사람을 믿지 않아요. (I don't trust that person.)
어제 학교에 가지 않았어요. (I didn't go to school yesterday.)
그 이야기는 사실이 아니에요. (That story is not true.)

안 vs -지 않다 Comparison¶

Aspect	안	-지 않다
Formality	Neutral	More formal
Length	Shorter	Longer
Emphasis	Less emphatic	More emphatic
Frequency	Very common	Selective
Naturalness	Natural in speech	More written/formal

Same meaning, different style: - 안 가요 = 가지 않아요 (don't go) - 안 좋아해요 = 좋아하지 않아요 (don't like)

못 (Short Form) - Inability/Cannot¶

Used when you're unable to do something due to circumstances or lack of ability.

Formation¶

Pattern: 못 + Verb

Basic Examples¶

Positive	Negative (못)	Translation
가요	못 가요	can't go
먹어요	못 먹어요	can't eat
자요	못 자요	can't sleep
읽어요	못 읽어요	can't read
해요	못 해요	can't do
와요	못 와요	can't come

With Different Tenses¶

Present: - 못 가요 (can't go) - 못 먹어요 (can't eat)

Past: - 못 갔어요 (couldn't go) - 못 먹었어요 (couldn't eat)

Future: - 못 갈 거예요 (won't be able to go) - 못 먹을 거예요 (won't be able to eat)

Usage Examples¶

오늘 바쁘서 못 가요. (I'm busy today, so I can't go.)
한국어를 못 해요. (I can't speak Korean.)
매운 음식을 못 먹어요. (I can't eat spicy food.)
어제 아파서 못 왔어요. (I was sick yesterday, so I couldn't come.)
시간이 없어서 못 만날 거예요. (I don't have time, so I won't be able to meet.)

-지 못하다 (Long Form) - Inability/Cannot¶

More formal way to express inability. Attach -지 못하다 to the verb stem.

Formation¶

Pattern: Verb stem + -지 못하다 Conjugate 못하다: 못해요 (informal polite), 못합니다 (formal polite)

Conjugation Table¶

Verb	Stem	Long Form (Cannot)	Translation
가다	가	가지 못해요	can't go
먹다	먹	먹지 못해요	can't eat
자다	자	자지 못해요	can't sleep
읽다	읽	읽지 못해요	can't read
하다	하	하지 못해요	can't do
오다	오	오지 못해요	can't come

With Different Tenses¶

Present: - 가지 못해요 (can't go) - 먹지 못해요 (can't eat)

Past: - 가지 못했어요 (couldn't go) - 먹지 못했어요 (couldn't eat)

Future: - 가지 못할 거예요 (won't be able to go) - 먹지 못할 거예요 (won't be able to eat)

Usage Examples¶

일이 많아서 가지 못해요. (I have a lot of work, so I can't go.)
너무 바쁘서 쉬지 못해요. (I'm too busy, so I can't rest.)
그때 가지 못했어요. (I couldn't go at that time.)
이해하지 못했어요. (I couldn't understand.)

못 vs -지 못하다 Comparison¶

Aspect	못	-지 못하다
Formality	Neutral	More formal
Length	Shorter	Longer
Usage	Very common in speech	More formal/written

Same meaning: - 못 가요 = 가지 못해요 (can't go) - 못 먹어요 = 먹지 못해요 (can't eat)

안 vs 못 - Crucial Difference¶

Understanding when to use 안 vs 못 is important:

안 - Won't/Don't (Choice)¶

Used for unwillingness, choice, or inherent state.

Examples: 1. 저는 고기를 안 먹어요. (I don't eat meat.) - choice/preference 2. 오늘 학교에 안 가요. (I'm not going to school today.) - decision 3. 그 사람을 안 좋아해요. (I don't like that person.) - feeling

못 - Can't (Inability)¶

Used for inability due to circumstances or lack of ability.

Examples: 1. 저는 한국어를 못 해요. (I can't speak Korean.) - lack of ability 2. 오늘 바쁘서 못 가요. (I'm busy, so I can't go.) - circumstance prevents 3. 매운 음식을 못 먹어요. (I can't eat spicy food.) - physical inability

Direct Comparisons¶

Situation	안 (Won't/Don't)	못 (Can't)
Eating vegetables	채소를 안 먹어요 (I don't eat vegetables - dislike)	채소를 못 먹어요 (I can't eat vegetables - allergy/restriction)
Speaking English	영어를 안 해요 (I don't speak English - choice)	영어를 못 해요 (I can't speak English - lack of ability)
Going to party	파티에 안 가요 (I'm not going to the party - don't want to)	파티에 못 가요 (I can't go to the party - circumstances prevent)

Special Case: 있다/없다¶

For 있다 (to have/exist) and 없다 (to not have), negation works differently:

있다 Negation¶

Positive: 있어요 (have/exists) Negative: 없어요 (don't have/doesn't exist) - NOT ~~안 있어요~~

Examples: 1. 시간이 없어요. (I don't have time.) 2. 돈이 없어요. (I don't have money.) 3. 친구가 없어요. (I don't have friends.)

For "can't have" use 못 or -지 못하다¶

가질 수 없어요 / 가지지 못해요 (can't have)

Special Case: 알다 (to know)¶

Positive: 알아요 (I know) Negative: - 몰라요 (don't know) - NOT ~~안 알아요~~ - 모르겠어요 (don't know / not sure)

Examples: 1. 몰라요. (I don't know.) 2. 그 사람을 몰라요. (I don't know that person.)

Negating Adjectives¶

Adjectives can also be negated. However, 못 is rarely used with adjectives.

With 안¶

Positive	Negative	Translation
좋아요	안 좋아요	not good
예쁘요	안 예뻐요	not pretty
크어요	안 커요	not big
재미있어요	안 재미있어요	not interesting

Examples¶

날씨가 안 좋아요. (The weather is not good.)
그 영화가 안 재미있었어요. (That movie was not interesting.)
음식이 안 매워요. (The food is not spicy.)

Formal Written/Speech Forms¶

For formal situations:

-지 않습니다: - 가지 않습니다 (don't go) - 믿지 않습니다 (don't believe)

-지 못합니다: - 가지 못합니다 (can't go) - 하지 못합니다 (can't do)

Practice¶

Negate using 안: 가요, 먹어요, 자요, 읽어요
Negate using -지 않다: 하다, 오다, 보다, 공부하다
Negate using 못: 가요, 해요, 먹어요, 자요
Negate using -지 못하다: 만나다, 끝내다, 이해하다
Choose 안 or 못: "I can't speak Korean." (lack of ability)
Choose 안 or 못: "I don't drink coffee." (dislike/choice)
Translate: "I didn't go to school yesterday." (choice)
Translate: "I couldn't sleep last night." (inability)
Correct the error: 시간이 안 있어요. ✗
Create two sentences: one with 안 and one with 못, explaining the difference

Show Answers

1. Negation with 안: - 가요 → 안 가요 - 먹어요 → 안 먹어요 - 자요 → 안 자요 - 읽어요 → 안 읽어요 2. Negation with -지 않다: - 하다 → 하지 않아요 - 오다 → 오지 않아요 - 보다 → 보지 않아요 - 공부하다 → 공부하지 않아요 3. Negation with 못: - 가요 → 못 가요 - 해요 → 못 해요 - 먹어요 → 못 먹어요 - 자요 → 못 자요 4. Negation with -지 못하다: - 만나다 → 만나지 못해요 - 끝내다 → 끝내지 못해요 - 이해하다 → 이해하지 못해요 5. 못: 한국어를 못 해요. (lack of ability = 못) 6. 안: 커피를 안 마셔요. (choice/preference = 안) 7. 어제 학교에 안 갔어요. (Choice/decision to not go = use 안) 8. 어젯밤에 못 잤어요. / 어젯밤에 자지 못했어요. (Inability to sleep = use 못) 9. Correction: 시간이 없어요. ✓ (Use 없다, not 안 있다, for "don't have") 10. Sample answers: - 안: 저는 고기를 안 먹어요. (I don't eat meat.) → This uses 안 because it's a choice/dietary preference - 못: 저는 매운 음식을 못 먹어요. (I can't eat spicy food.) → This uses 못 because it's a physical inability/intolerance The first sentence means I choose not to eat meat (vegetarian), while the second means I'm physically unable to handle spicy food.