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Usages of de ha nai
天気 が 悪い とき、 私 は 自転車 で は なく 地下鉄 に 乗ります。tenki ga warui toki, watasi ha zitensya de ha naku tikatetu ni norimasu.
When the weather is bad, I take the subway instead of a bicycle.
猫 は 犬 で は ない。neko ha inu de ha nai.
A cat is not a dog.
父 は 夜 に 車 を 運転するの が 好き で は ありません。titi ha yoru ni kuruma wo untensuruno ga suki de ha arimasen.
My father doesn’t like driving a car at night.
いつも は 朝 の 電車 は 満員 だ と 彼 は 言う けど、 今日 は 満員 で は ない みたい。itumo ha asa no densya ha manin da to kare ha iu kedo, kyou ha manin de ha nai mitai.
He says the morning trains are usually packed, but today they don’t seem full.
私 は 英語 が 苦手 だ が、 日本語 は 苦手 で は ない。watasi ha eigo ga nigate da ga, nihongo ha nigate de ha nai.
I’m not good at English, but I’m not bad at Japanese.
Test yourself: What does de ha nai mean?
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Japanese verbs conjugate based on tense, politeness, and mood. For example, the polite present form adds ‑ます to the verb stem, while the past tense uses ‑ました. Unlike English, Japanese verbs don't change based on the subject — the same form works for "I", "you", and "they".
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