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This topic is part of the Korean programme useful for TOPIK I, TOPIK II and school exams. Practising with exam-style questions improves accuracy and speed.

부정 표현 안/못/-지 않다

Tenses 2

Korean negates with the short 안 before the verb, or the longer -지 않다 after the stem. 못 adds the meaning cannot.

Tenses — Present, past and future, and how the ending changes with time.

Lesson

Short 안 and long -지 않다

Put 안 before the verb: 안 가요 (I do not go). Or attach -지 않다: 가지 않아요. Both are correct; -지 않다 is a little more formal and is common in writing.

क्रिया से पहले 안 लगाएँ: 안 가요 (मैं नहीं जाता)। या -지 않다 जोड़ें: 가지 않아요। दोनों सही हैं; -지 않다 कुछ अधिक औपचारिक है और लेखन में सामान्य है।

Negation in the past

For the past, negate the past form: 안 갔어요 and 가지 않았어요 both mean did not go. 못 갔어요 means could not go. The marker stays next to the verb, never at the start.

भूत काल के लिए भूत रूप का नकार करें: 안 갔어요 और 가지 않았어요 दोनों का अर्थ नहीं गया है। 못 갔어요 का अर्थ नहीं जा सका। चिह्न क्रिया के पास ही रहता है, वाक्य के आरंभ में कभी नहीं।

Saying what you did not do

오늘 학교에 안 갔어요 (I did not go to school today). 어제 술을 마시지 않았어요 (I did not drink yesterday). 시간이 없어서 못 갔어요 (I could not go because I had no time).

오늘 학교에 안 갔어요 (मैं आज विद्यालय नहीं गया)। 어제 술을 마시지 않았어요 (मैंने कल शराब नहीं पी)। 시간이 없어서 못 갔어요 (समय न होने के कारण मैं नहीं जा सका)।

Where 안 goes with 하다 verbs

With a 하다 verb the short negation goes inside: 공부해요 becomes 공부 안 해요, not 안 공부해요. The long form is 공부하지 않아요. Putting 안 in front of the whole word is the classic error.

하다 क्रिया के साथ छोटा नकार भीतर आता है: 공부해요 का रूप 공부 안 해요 होता है, 안 공부해요 नहीं। लंबा रूप 공부하지 않아요 है। पूरे शब्द के आगे 안 लगाना सबसे आम भूल है।

안 is not 못

안 says you simply do not do something; 못 says you cannot because of a situation. 저는 안 갔어요 (I chose not to go) is different from 저는 못 갔어요 (I was unable to go).

안 बताता है कि आप कुछ नहीं करते; 못 बताता है कि परिस्थिति के कारण आप कर नहीं सकते। 저는 안 갔어요 (मैंने जाना नहीं चुना) और 저는 못 갔어요 (मैं जा नहीं सका) में अंतर है।

Practice questions

Q1. 공부하다의 올바른 짧은 부정은?

공부하다 का सही छोटा नकार रूप कौन-सा है?

공부 안 해요
안 공부해요
공부해요 안
공부 안 하다

Answer: 공부 안 해요

💡 하다 동사는 공부 안 해요처럼 안을 안에 넣어요.

Q2. 시간이 없어서 ___ (못 가다).

시간이 없어서 ___ (못 가다)।

Answer: 못 갔어요

💡 못은 할 수 없음을 나타내어 못 갔어요가 돼요.

Q3. 단순한 과거 부정 표현으로 알맞은 것은?

सामान्य भूत नकार के लिए कौन-सा रूप उचित है?

안 갔어요
안 가요
갈 거예요
가고 있어요

Answer: 안 갔어요

💡 단순한 과거 부정은 안 갔어요예요.

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