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Mandarin has two, 不 (bù) and 没 (méi), and they split the work cleanly: 不 negates what is true now, what will be true, what is habitually true, and adjectives; 没 negates completed past actions. They are not interchangeable, the choice between them is one of the first grammar decisions you make in every negative sentence, and the good news is that the rule is small enough to fit on an index card. This page is the whole rule.",[53,54,56],"h2",{"id":55},"the-two-negators-at-a-glance","The two negators at a glance",[58,59,60,82],"table",{},[61,62,63],"thead",{},[64,65,66,70,73,76,79],"tr",{},[67,68,69],"th",{},"Negator",[67,71,72],{},"Pinyin",[67,74,75],{},"Negates",[67,77,78],{},"Example",[67,80,81],{},"Translation",[83,84,85,103],"tbody",{},[64,86,87,91,94,97,100],{},[88,89,90],"td",{},"不",[88,92,93],{},"bù",[88,95,96],{},"Present, future, habits, willingness, adjectives",[88,98,99],{},"我不去 (wǒ bú qù)",[88,101,102],{},"I am not going",[64,104,105,108,111,114,117],{},[88,106,107],{},"没",[88,109,110],{},"méi",[88,112,113],{},"Completed past actions, and 有",[88,115,116],{},"我没去 (wǒ méi qù)",[88,118,119],{},"I did not go",[49,121,122],{},"The same verb, 去 (qù, to go), with the two negators, gives two different meanings. 我不去 is a statement about now or the future: I am not going, I refuse to go, I do not go. 我没去 is a statement about the past: the going did not happen. That minimal pair is the entire system in miniature.",[53,124,126],{"id":125},"不-bù-the-present-the-future-habits-and-adjectives","不 (bù): the present, the future, habits, and adjectives",[49,128,129],{},"不 goes directly in front of the verb (or adjective), and nothing else in the sentence moves. If the English negative is \"don't\", \"won't\", \"isn't\" or \"not + adjective\", you want 不.",[58,131,132,143],{},[61,133,134],{},[64,135,136,139,141],{},[67,137,138],{},"Sentence",[67,140,72],{},[67,142,81],{},[83,144,145,156,167,178,189,200],{},[64,146,147,150,153],{},[88,148,149],{},"我不去",[88,151,152],{},"wǒ bú qù",[88,154,155],{},"I am not going \u002F I will not go",[64,157,158,161,164],{},[88,159,160],{},"我不知道",[88,162,163],{},"wǒ bù zhī dào",[88,165,166],{},"I do not know",[64,168,169,172,175],{},[88,170,171],{},"他不是我先生",[88,173,174],{},"tā bú shì wǒ xiān shēng",[88,176,177],{},"He is not my husband",[64,179,180,183,186],{},[88,181,182],{},"我不喜欢这个",[88,184,185],{},"wǒ bù xǐ huan zhè ge",[88,187,188],{},"I do not like this one",[64,190,191,194,197],{},[88,192,193],{},"我不想去",[88,195,196],{},"wǒ bù xiǎng qù",[88,198,199],{},"I do not want to go",[64,201,202,205,208],{},[88,203,204],{},"这个不好",[88,206,207],{},"zhè ge bù hǎo",[88,209,210],{},"This one is not good",[49,212,213],{},"Three of those deserve a note:",[215,216,217,225,231],"ul",{},[218,219,220,224],"li",{},[221,222,223],"strong",{},"不是 (bú shì)",": the copula 是 always negates with 不, never 没. Chapter 3 covers 是 in full; for now, 不是 is the fixed shape of \"is not\".",[218,226,227,230],{},[221,228,229],{},"不想 \u002F 不要 (bù xiǎng \u002F bú yào)",": willingness and wanting are states, not completed events, so they take 不 even when you are talking about a past refusal.",[218,232,233,236],{},[221,234,235],{},"这个不好 (zhè ge bù hǎo)",": adjectives take 不 directly. There is no \"is\" in the Mandarin sentence to negate; the adjective carries the meaning \"to be good\" on its own, and 不 flips it.",[53,238,240],{"id":239},"没-méi-the-past-that-did-not-happen","没 (méi): the past that did not happen",[49,242,243],{},"没 negates actions that were expected, possible or supposed to happen, and did not. If the English negative is \"didn't\" or \"hasn't\", you want 没.",[58,245,246,256],{},[61,247,248],{},[64,249,250,252,254],{},[67,251,138],{},[67,253,72],{},[67,255,81],{},[83,257,258,269,279,290,301],{},[64,259,260,263,266],{},[88,261,262],{},"他没来",[88,264,265],{},"tā méi lái",[88,267,268],{},"He did not come",[64,270,271,274,277],{},[88,272,273],{},"我没去",[88,275,276],{},"wǒ méi qù",[88,278,119],{},[64,280,281,284,287],{},[88,282,283],{},"她没说什么",[88,285,286],{},"tā méi shuō shén me",[88,288,289],{},"She did not say anything",[64,291,292,295,298],{},[88,293,294],{},"我没看到",[88,296,297],{},"wǒ méi kàn dào",[88,299,300],{},"I did not see it",[64,302,303,306,309],{},[88,304,305],{},"他没告诉我",[88,307,308],{},"tā méi gào sù wǒ",[88,310,311],{},"He did not tell me",[49,313,314],{},"Notice what is missing from every one of those sentences: any past-tense marking on the verb. 没 does the \"did not\" work by itself. The verb stays in its bare dictionary form, exactly as it appears on its word page. This matters because of beginner error number three below.",[53,316,318],{"id":317},"有-yǒu-only-ever-takes-没","有 (yǒu) only ever takes 没",[49,320,321],{},"有 (yǒu, to have \u002F there is) is the one verb in the language with a fixed negator: 没. The negative of 有 is 没有 (méi yǒu), in every tense, in every context, with no exceptions.",[58,323,324,334],{},[61,325,326],{},[64,327,328,330,332],{},[67,329,138],{},[67,331,72],{},[67,333,81],{},[83,335,336,347,358],{},[64,337,338,341,344],{},[88,339,340],{},"我没有事",[88,342,343],{},"wǒ méi yǒu shì",[88,345,346],{},"I have nothing on",[64,348,349,352,355],{},[88,350,351],{},"我没有这个",[88,353,354],{},"wǒ méi yǒu zhè ge",[88,356,357],{},"I do not have this",[64,359,360,363,366],{},[88,361,362],{},"这里没有人",[88,364,365],{},"zhè lǐ méi yǒu rén",[88,367,368],{},"There is nobody here",[49,370,371],{},"不有 does not exist. It is not rare, not formal, not regional: it is simply not Mandarin. Because English speakers default to 不 as \"the\" negator, 不有 is the single most common negation error in a beginner's first month. When 有 shows up, the 不-vs-没 decision is already made for you.",[49,373,374],{},"In speech, 没有 frequently shortens to bare 没 before a noun: 我没事 (wǒ méi shì, I am fine \u002F nothing is wrong). Both forms are correct; 没有 is the full shape to learn first. Chapter 3 covers 有 and possession in full.",[53,376,378],{"id":377},"the-tone-change-bù-becomes-bú-before-a-fourth-tone","The tone change: bù becomes bú before a fourth tone",[49,380,381],{},"不 is a fourth-tone syllable, bù. But Mandarin does not like two fourth tones back to back, so when the syllable after 不 is also fourth tone, 不 shifts to second tone: bú. The character never changes; only the pronunciation does. This is tone sandhi, and it is automatic and obligatory, not optional colouring.",[58,383,384,397],{},[61,385,386],{},[64,387,388,391,394],{},[67,389,390],{},"Written",[67,392,393],{},"Pronounced",[67,395,396],{},"Why",[83,398,399,410,421,432,443,454,465,476],{},[64,400,401,404,407],{},[88,402,403],{},"不是",[88,405,406],{},"bú shì",[88,408,409],{},"是 is fourth tone, so 不 shifts",[64,411,412,415,418],{},[88,413,414],{},"不去",[88,416,417],{},"bú qù",[88,419,420],{},"去 is fourth tone, so 不 shifts",[64,422,423,426,429],{},[88,424,425],{},"不要",[88,427,428],{},"bú yào",[88,430,431],{},"要 is fourth tone, so 不 shifts",[64,433,434,437,440],{},[88,435,436],{},"不会",[88,438,439],{},"bú huì",[88,441,442],{},"会 is fourth tone, so 不 shifts",[64,444,445,448,451],{},[88,446,447],{},"不好",[88,449,450],{},"bù hǎo",[88,452,453],{},"好 is third tone, no shift",[64,455,456,459,462],{},[88,457,458],{},"不来",[88,460,461],{},"bù lái",[88,463,464],{},"来 is second tone, no shift",[64,466,467,470,473],{},[88,468,469],{},"不说",[88,471,472],{},"bù shuō",[88,474,475],{},"说 is first tone, no shift",[64,477,478,481,484],{},[88,479,480],{},"不能",[88,482,483],{},"bù néng",[88,485,486],{},"能 is second tone, no shift",[49,488,489,490,495],{},"没 (méi) has no sandhi of its own; it is second tone everywhere. See the ",[491,492,494],"a",{"href":493},"\u002Fmandarin\u002Fpinyin","pinyin and tones page"," for the other big sandhi rule (third tone + third tone).",[53,497,499],{"id":498},"the-four-beginner-errors","The four beginner errors",[501,502,503,509,515,521],"ol",{},[218,504,505,508],{},[221,506,507],{},"不有."," Does not exist. The negative of 有 is 没有, always. If you catch yourself about to say 不有, say 没有 and move on.",[218,510,511,514],{},[221,512,513],{},"没 for the future or for habits."," 没 is for things that did not happen. \"I am not going tomorrow\" is 我明天不去 (wǒ míng tiān bú qù), never 我明天没去. If the event has not had its chance to happen yet, 没 cannot negate it.",[218,516,517,520],{},[221,518,519],{},"没 + 了 together."," The completion marker 了 (le) and 没 do the same job from opposite directions, so they do not stack. \"I did not go\" is 我没去, not 我没去了. When 没 arrives, 了 leaves.",[218,522,523,526],{},[221,524,525],{},"没 with adjectives."," \"This is not good\" is 这个不好, not 这个没好. Adjectives are states, and states belong to 不.",[53,528,530],{"id":529},"the-cheatsheet","The cheatsheet",[58,532,533,544],{},[61,534,535],{},[64,536,537,540,542],{},[67,538,539],{},"Situation",[67,541,69],{},[67,543,78],{},[83,545,546,555,565,574,584,594,604],{},[64,547,548,551,553],{},[88,549,550],{},"Now \u002F future \u002F refusal",[88,552,90],{},[88,554,99],{},[64,556,557,560,562],{},[88,558,559],{},"Habit \u002F standing preference",[88,561,90],{},[88,563,564],{},"我不喜欢这个 (wǒ bù xǐ huan zhè ge)",[64,566,567,570,572],{},[88,568,569],{},"Adjective",[88,571,90],{},[88,573,235],{},[64,575,576,579,581],{},[88,577,578],{},"Identity with 是",[88,580,90],{},[88,582,583],{},"他不是我先生 (tā bú shì wǒ xiān shēng)",[64,585,586,589,591],{},[88,587,588],{},"Completed past action",[88,590,107],{},[88,592,593],{},"他没来 (tā méi lái)",[64,595,596,599,601],{},[88,597,598],{},"Possession \u002F existence with 有",[88,600,107],{},[88,602,603],{},"我没有事 (wǒ méi yǒu shì)",[64,605,606,609,612],{},[88,607,608],{},"不 before a fourth tone",[88,610,611],{},"bú",[88,613,614],{},"不是 (bú shì), 不去 (bú qù)",[53,616,618],{"id":617},"cross-links","Cross-links",[215,620,621,628,635,642,649,656],{},[218,622,623,627],{},[491,624,626],{"href":625},"\u002Fmandarin","Mandarin pillar"," for where negation sits in the first weeks of the curriculum.",[218,629,630,634],{},[491,631,633],{"href":632},"\u002Fmandarin\u002Fgrammar","Mandarin grammar"," for the wider grammar map.",[218,636,637,641],{},[491,638,640],{"href":639},"\u002Fmandarin\u002Fgrammar\u002Fcopula-shi","The copula 是"," for the full story on 是 and 不是.",[218,643,644,648],{},[491,645,647],{"href":646},"\u002Fmandarin\u002Fgrammar\u002Fpossession-you","Possession with 有"," for 有, 没有 and the existence pattern.",[218,650,651,655],{},[491,652,654],{"href":653},"\u002Fmandarin\u002Fgrammar\u002Faspect-markers","Aspect markers"," for 了 and why it disappears after 没.",[218,657,658,661],{},[491,659,660],{"href":493},"Pinyin and tones"," for tone sandhi beyond the 不 rule.",{"title":663,"searchDepth":664,"depth":664,"links":665},"",2,[666,667,668,669,670,671,672,673],{"id":55,"depth":664,"text":56},{"id":125,"depth":664,"text":126},{"id":239,"depth":664,"text":240},{"id":317,"depth":664,"text":318},{"id":377,"depth":664,"text":378},{"id":498,"depth":664,"text":499},{"id":529,"depth":664,"text":530},{"id":617,"depth":664,"text":618},null,"2026-07-07T00:00:00+00:00","How to say not in Mandarin: 不 negates the present, future, habits and adjectives; 没 negates completed actions and 有. Plus the bù to bú tone change.",[678,699,719],{"type":679,"instructions":680,"options":681,"items":682},"which-one","Pick the right negator: 不 for now \u002F the future \u002F habits \u002F adjectives, 没 for completed past actions and for 有.",[90,107],[683,685,687,689,691,693,695,697],{"prompt":684,"answer":90},"我___去。 (I am not going - a decision about the future)",{"prompt":686,"answer":107},"他还___来。 (he has not come yet - completed action)",{"prompt":688,"answer":107},"我___有事。 (I have nothing on)",{"prompt":690,"answer":90},"他___是我先生。 (he is not my husband)",{"prompt":692,"answer":107},"她___说什么。 (she did not say anything - past)",{"prompt":694,"answer":90},"我___喜欢这个。 (I do not like this one - a standing preference)",{"prompt":696,"answer":107},"他们___听我说。 (they did not listen to me - past)",{"prompt":698,"answer":90},"我___会做。 (I cannot do it)",{"type":679,"instructions":700,"options":701,"items":702},"Tone sandhi: is 不 pronounced bù or bú here? It shifts to bú only before a fourth-tone syllable.",[93,611],[703,705,707,709,711,713,715,717],{"prompt":704,"answer":611},"不是 (shì is fourth tone)",{"prompt":706,"answer":93},"不好 (hǎo is third tone)",{"prompt":708,"answer":611},"不去 (qù is fourth tone)",{"prompt":710,"answer":93},"不说 (shuō is first tone)",{"prompt":712,"answer":611},"不要 (yào is fourth tone)",{"prompt":714,"answer":93},"不能 (néng is second tone)",{"prompt":716,"answer":93},"不想 (xiǎng is third tone)",{"prompt":718,"answer":611},"不会 (huì is fourth tone)",{"type":720,"instructions":721,"items":722},"translate","Translate into Mandarin. Decide first: is this a 不 sentence or a 没 sentence?",[723,726,729,732,735,738,741,744],{"prompt":724,"answer":725},"I am not going.","我不去。",{"prompt":727,"answer":728},"He did not come.","他没来。",{"prompt":730,"answer":731},"We do not know.","我们不知道。",{"prompt":733,"answer":734},"I do not have this.","我没有这个。",{"prompt":736,"answer":737},"He is not my husband.","他不是我的先生。",{"prompt":739,"answer":740},"I did not see it.","我没看到。",{"prompt":742,"answer":743},"He did not tell me.","他没告诉我。",{"prompt":745,"answer":746},"I do not want to go.","我不想去。","md",[749,752,755,758,761],{"q":750,"a":751},"What is the difference between 不 (bù) and 没 (méi)?","不 (bù) negates the present, the future, habits, willingness and adjectives: 我不去 (wǒ bú qù, I am not going \u002F I will not go), 我不喜欢这个 (wǒ bù xǐ huan zhè ge, I do not like this). 没 (méi) negates completed past actions: 我没去 (wǒ méi qù, I did not go), 他没来 (tā méi lái, he did not come). The quick test: if the English negative uses 'didn't' or 'haven't', reach for 没; for everything else, reach for 不.",{"q":753,"a":754},"Why is 不有 wrong in Mandarin?","有 (yǒu, to have \u002F there is) is the one verb that never takes 不. Its only negative form is 没有 (méi yǒu): 我没有事 (wǒ méi yǒu shì, I have nothing on). 不有 simply does not exist in the language, at any tense, in any register. If you remember one rule from this page, make it this one, because 不有 is the single most common beginner negation error.",{"q":756,"a":757},"When does 不 (bù) change tone to bú?","不 is fourth tone (bù) by default, but when the next syllable is ALSO fourth tone, 不 shifts to second tone: bú. So 不是 is bú shì, 不去 is bú qù, 不要 is bú yào, and 不会 is bú huì, while 不好 (bù hǎo), 不来 (bù lái) and 不能 (bù néng) keep bù. This is tone sandhi: the character is written 不 either way, only the pronunciation changes. Native speakers do it automatically and will hear the missed shift immediately.",{"q":759,"a":760},"Can 没 (méi) negate an adjective?","Not in the basic 'X is not Y' sense. Adjectives take 不: 不好 (bù hǎo, not good), 不快 (bú kuài, not fast). Saying 我没好 for 'I am not well' is wrong at this level. (Later you will meet 没 with adjectives to mean 'has not yet become', as in 'not better yet', but that is a change-of-state pattern for a later chapter. For now: adjectives take 不, full stop.)",{"q":762,"a":763},"Do I use 不 or 没 to talk about the future?","Always 不. 没 negates things that were supposed to have happened and did not, so it has no business in the future. 'I am not going tomorrow' is 我明天不去 (wǒ míng tiān bú qù), never 我明天没去. The one apparent exception, 没有 for 'will not have', is really the 有-rule winning: 有 takes 没 everywhere, including the future.","foundation",{"category":766,"tags":767,"tldr":772,"authorsTake":773},"Methodology",[768,769,770,771],"mandarin negation","bu vs mei","mandarin grammar","mandarin for beginners","Mandarin has two words for 'not' and they are not interchangeable. 不 (bù) negates what is true now, what will be true, what is habitually true, and adjectives: 我不去 (wǒ bú qù, I am not going). 没 (méi) negates completed past actions: 我没去 (wǒ méi qù, I did not go). 有 (yǒu, to have) is the special case: it only ever takes 没, giving 没有 (méi yǒu); 不有 does not exist in the language. One pronunciation rule rides along: 不 is fourth tone (bù) by default but shifts to second tone (bú) before another fourth-tone syllable, so 不是 is bú shì and 不好 stays bù hǎo.","Most textbooks teach this pair as \"不 means not, 没 means didn't\", and that gloss is why learners keep producing 不有. The framing that actually holds up: 没 is the negator of COMPLETION and EXISTENCE, 不 is the negator of everything else - intention, habit, state, identity. 有 takes 没 not because it is an exception to memorise but because possession IS existence (\"there exists, at me, a thing\"), so it belongs to 没 by right. Teach the category, not the exception list.\n\nThe other opinion worth having: drill 没 with bare verbs early. English speakers reach for a past-tense marker out of reflex, notice 了 exists, and produce 我没去了. But 没 already does the completion work; adding 了 doubles it and breaks the sentence. A learner who says 我没去, full stop, with no decoration, sounds more native at week two than one who decorates every verb.\n",true,"\u002Fmandarin\u002Fgrammar\u002Fnegation-bu-mei",{"title":38,"description":676},"mandarin\u002Fgrammar\u002Fnegation-bu-mei","Yt8LrD4RnAKZuriHAImBczmypoUek-UUUseqy-yBJsg",[],{"left":4,"top":4,"width":5,"height":5,"rotate":4,"vFlip":6,"hFlip":6,"body":781},"\u003Cpath fill=\"none\" stroke=\"currentColor\" stroke-linecap=\"round\" stroke-linejoin=\"round\" stroke-width=\"2\" d=\"M13 21h8M15 5l4 4m2.174-2.188a1 1 0 0 0-3.986-3.987L3.842 16.174a2 2 0 0 0-.5.83l-1.321 4.352a.5.5 0 0 0 .623.622l4.353-1.32a2 2 0 0 0 .83-.497z\"\u002F>",{"left":4,"top":4,"width":5,"height":5,"rotate":4,"vFlip":6,"hFlip":6,"body":783},"\u003Cg fill=\"none\" stroke=\"currentColor\" stroke-linecap=\"round\" stroke-linejoin=\"round\" stroke-width=\"2\">\u003Cpath d=\"M12 15V3m9 12v4a2 2 0 0 1-2 2H5a2 2 0 0 1-2-2v-4\"\u002F>\u003Cpath d=\"m7 10l5 5l5-5\"\u002F>\u003C\u002Fg>",{"left":4,"top":4,"width":5,"height":5,"rotate":4,"vFlip":6,"hFlip":6,"body":785},"\u003Cg fill=\"none\" stroke=\"currentColor\" stroke-linecap=\"round\" stroke-linejoin=\"round\" stroke-width=\"2\">\u003Cpath d=\"M20 20a2 2 0 0 0 2-2V8a2 2 0 0 0-2-2h-7.9a2 2 0 0 1-1.69-.9L9.6 3.9A2 2 0 0 0 7.93 3H4a2 2 0 0 0-2 2v13a2 2 0 0 0 2 2Zm-8-10v6\"\u002F>\u003Cpath d=\"m15 13l-3 3l-3-3\"\u002F>\u003C\u002Fg>",{"left":4,"top":4,"width":5,"height":5,"rotate":4,"vFlip":6,"hFlip":6,"body":787},"\u003Cpath fill=\"none\" stroke=\"currentColor\" stroke-linecap=\"round\" stroke-linejoin=\"round\" stroke-width=\"2\" d=\"M11 4.702a.705.705 0 0 0-1.203-.498L6.413 7.587A1.4 1.4 0 0 1 5.416 8H3a1 1 0 0 0-1 1v6a1 1 0 0 0 1 1h2.416a1.4 1.4 0 0 1 .997.413l3.383 3.384A.705.705 0 0 0 11 19.298zM16 9a5 5 0 0 1 0 6m3.364 3.364a9 9 0 0 0 0-12.728\"\u002F>"]