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日本語 Nihongo
Learning Japanese
Saying "I have/have not (done that)"
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<blockquote data-quote="AmerikaJin5" data-source="post: 794535" data-attributes="member: 64053"><p>I find it's helpful for myself to think of the present-tense verbs as being open to future intentions.</p><p>食べる/食べない means "to eat/not eat" or in terms of real meaning "I <strong>will</strong> eat/not eat". The past-tense 食べた/食べなかった refers to a specific time/instance meaning "I ate/did not eat". The progressive form 食べてる/食べてない means "I am eating/not eating" or likewise "I have been eating/not been eating". The past-progressive form 食べてた/食べてなかった is the same except past-tense, meaning "I was eating/not eating" or also "I had been eating/not been eating".</p><p>Keeping that in mind, think about the context of the sentence when deciding which to choose for the English equivalent. As [USER=61235]@Majestic[/USER] said, some conjugations just do no transfer. However, we can still figure out what sounds strange or natural.</p><p></p><p>For example, to answer the question "Did you eat my lunch/Have you eaten my lunch?" we would answer "I have not/I did not". To answer in Japanese with 食べなかった sounds like you refer to a specific instance, when although it's true that you didn't eat it, perhaps you only didn't because you missed your chance etc. <img src="data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7" class="smilie smilie--sprite smilie--sprite118" alt=";)" title="Wink ;)" loading="lazy" data-shortname=";)" /> It gives no indication that you are innocent, per se. 食べてなかった also sounds like a specific time period in which you had not eaten the lunch; it says nothing about the present or future, either. 食べてない on the other hand, expresses that you have not eaten the lunch (at any time period pertaining to the current situation), and furthermore you have no intention of eating it (even if you had the chance).</p><p></p><p>On the other hand, imagine a scenario where your friend asks "did you try that matcha cake at the restaurant last night?" then you would answer 食べなかった because it refers to a specific time/instance, and perhaps you intended to eat it, or you would like to eat it in the future, so this answer makes more sense than 食べてない.</p><p></p><p>I hope that makes sense.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="AmerikaJin5, post: 794535, member: 64053"] I find it's helpful for myself to think of the present-tense verbs as being open to future intentions. 食べる/食べない means "to eat/not eat" or in terms of real meaning "I [B]will[/B] eat/not eat". The past-tense 食べた/食べなかった refers to a specific time/instance meaning "I ate/did not eat". The progressive form 食べてる/食べてない means "I am eating/not eating" or likewise "I have been eating/not been eating". The past-progressive form 食べてた/食べてなかった is the same except past-tense, meaning "I was eating/not eating" or also "I had been eating/not been eating". Keeping that in mind, think about the context of the sentence when deciding which to choose for the English equivalent. As [USER=61235]@Majestic[/USER] said, some conjugations just do no transfer. However, we can still figure out what sounds strange or natural. For example, to answer the question "Did you eat my lunch/Have you eaten my lunch?" we would answer "I have not/I did not". To answer in Japanese with 食べなかった sounds like you refer to a specific instance, when although it's true that you didn't eat it, perhaps you only didn't because you missed your chance etc. ;) It gives no indication that you are innocent, per se. 食べてなかった also sounds like a specific time period in which you had not eaten the lunch; it says nothing about the present or future, either. 食べてない on the other hand, expresses that you have not eaten the lunch (at any time period pertaining to the current situation), and furthermore you have no intention of eating it (even if you had the chance). On the other hand, imagine a scenario where your friend asks "did you try that matcha cake at the restaurant last night?" then you would answer 食べなかった because it refers to a specific time/instance, and perhaps you intended to eat it, or you would like to eat it in the future, so this answer makes more sense than 食べてない. I hope that makes sense. [/QUOTE]
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Saying "I have/have not (done that)"
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