7

I'm trying to understand when 没有 should be used instead of 不 when negating a sentence.

Consider the example "I'm not wrong."

Why is it 没有错?

How can I know when to use 没有 when negating a sentence?

谢谢

Improve this question

5 Answers 5

Reset to default
6

This particular example is completely idiomatic. 不错 is an adjective meaning 'not bad', the negation of 错 as verb 'to wrong; to mistake' is '没有错'.

Generally 没有 is used in past tense or perfect tense to falsify a statement of fact; 不 is used in present or future tense to express (un)willingness.

没有：

你吃饭了么？Have you eaten?

我没有吃。I haven't.

不：

你吃饭么？Are you going to eat something?

我不吃。No I am not.

Another example to compare the two as answers to the same question:

Q: 他说了么？Did he tell you?

A1: 他没有说。He didn't.

A2: 他不说。He wouldn't tell me.

Improve this answer
2
  • 1
    I wouldn't say completely idiomatic. 错 is usually a verb meaning "to make an error" (so naturally you negate past with 没有), but it's acting as an adjective in 不错 (so naturally uses 不). The idiomatic thing is that 错 has limited use as an adjective. You can say 这是错的 or 很不错, but it's rare to see 很错.
    – Stumpy Joe Pete
    Apr 28, 2013 at 23:28
  • @StumpyJoePete You're right. I didn't expand on 'part of speech' differences. If you look at it as a whole, it is still 'completely idiomatic' because there isn't another similar word to apply the exact same rule.
    – NS.X.
    Apr 29, 2013 at 0:20
4
  • 没(有) means not have
  • 不 means not

The confusion arises because 错 has multiple meanings:

  • As a noun, it can mean an error.

    没(有)错 means have no error. Or idiomatically, not wrong.

  • As an adjective, it can mean bad.

    不错 means not bad. This adjective is always used with 不 in front.

(有) is usually omitted in conversation.

Improve this answer
6
  • Isn't the usual use a verb? 我错了，你没错，etc. Also, it is an adj in 不错, but it has some very curious restrictions (how often do you see 很错?) that make it a little different than 不 + normal ADJ.
    – Stumpy Joe Pete
    May 2, 2013 at 6:30
  • @StumpyJoePete, no, 错 as a verb means some other things e.g. to separate 〈动 9〉. 我错了，你没错 is actually a shortened representation of 我(知道)错了，你没(做)错. Both 《在线新华字典》 and 《汉典》list 错 as a noun to mean an error, not a verb. I don't think 很错 is a proper phrase for very bad, that is why I wrote that this adjective (listed as one in both dictionaries) is always used in conjunction with 不.
    – 杨以轩
    May 2, 2013 at 7:00
  • Interesting. To clarify, you're saying that in my examples, 错 is considered a shortened form of 做错? In that case, 错 is acting as a verb, although not the way I had imagined (Note that in both 我错了 and 你没错, 错 is the predicate).
    – Stumpy Joe Pete
    May 2, 2013 at 21:38
  • What I am trying to say is that in Chinese, word omissions are common when the meaning is obvious. 错 appears to act as a verb because the verbs 知道 and 做 are omitted from the sentence. Chinese is not just a pro-drop language. In fact, whole predicate can be dropped, not just the pronoun.
    – 杨以轩
    May 3, 2013 at 3:09
  • I'm still not getting it. In 我(知道)错了, it looks like that's the same as 我知道我错了 to me. In order for 错 to be a N, it would have to mean "I know (an) error", not "I know that I erred (i.e., made a mistake)"; In the other scenario: 你没(做)错, I see it as an ADJ acting as a complement (结果补语) to the V (i.e., 做错，写错 are like 听懂 or 打砸). Notice that you can add an object, so it doesn't make sense for it to be a N: 我写错作业.
    – Stumpy Joe Pete
    May 3, 2013 at 3:30
1

没有 has some sense of past tense, similar to "haven't" or "didn't"

"我没有吸烟" translates similarly to "I did not smoke".

"我没有吃饭" translates similarly to "I have not eaten yet".

不 is rather neutral, and has some sense of present tense

"我不吸烟" translates to "I don't smoke", it is stating a habit or a preference

"我不吃饭" translates similarly to "I don't eat", or "I won't eat", which is slightly strange

Improve this answer
0

Simply, 不错 means "quite good" in Chinese. It's a single word, not 错 with negating 不.

More examples:

  • 那个女孩长得不错. That girl is so beautiful.
  • 这道菜不错. This dish is quite delicious.

Moreover, 错 is a noun, and nouns should not appear after 不. Some verbs (usually actions like 看/听/去/吃) could appear after both 不 or 没有, but they usually have different meanings or tenses, for example:

  • 我没有回家. I didn't go home.
  • 我不回家. I won't go home.
  • 他没有看那场比赛. He didn't watch that game.
  • 他不看那场比赛. He wouldn't watch that game.
Improve this answer
0

I just wanted to complement the other answers.

不错 has two meanings, depending on the contexts:

1) it means "quite good", where it is actually a single word, and you CAN NOT treat it as 不 negating 错.

Example: 你字写得不错啊。Your handwriting is pretty good.

2) it means "not wrong", where it is a compounded word, and you CAN think it of 不 negating 错.

Example:

A: 原来你是西毒欧阳锋. You are OuYang Feng, the West Poisoner!

B: 兄弟所言不错，在下正是欧阳锋。Yes, What you brother said is not wrong (or is right). I am OuYang Feng.

But for the 2nd meaning, I can only think of the usage in 所言不错, so this usage is very rare.

Improve this answer

Your Answer

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service and acknowledge that you have read and understand our privacy policy and code of conduct.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.