Vietnamese Negation

'không' is commonly used to express negation such as 'not' or 'no'.

chưa indicates that an action or state has not happened up to the moment of speaking, similar to 'not yet' in English.

không phải is used to negate identity, judgment, or noun phrases, similar to 'is not' in English.

đừng is used to advise or request someone not to do something, similar to the English 'don't'.

Both chớ and đừng mean 'do not'; chớ is more formal or used in warnings, while đừng is more common in daily speech.

không được indicates prohibition or inability due to rules or conditions, similar to 'cannot' or 'not allowed'.

không thể expresses objective inability or impossibility, similar to 'cannot' or 'unable to'.

không cần means 'do not need', negating necessity rather than the action itself.

không nên expresses advice against doing something, similar to 'should not' or 'better not'.

'không còn' indicates that something that used to exist or happen no longer does.

'không bao giờ' means 'never' or 'not ever', negating frequency.

'không ai' means 'no one' and is often used as the subject or object to negate people.

'không gì' means 'nothing' or 'not anything', negating things or content.

'không đâu' is a colloquial negation used to soften a denial or refusal, similar to 'no, not at all' or 'that's not true'.

'chẳng' is a more colloquial or emotive negation often conveying 'not at all' or 'absolutely not'.

không hề is used to strongly emphasize the complete absence of an action, feeling, or state. It is similar to 'completely not' or 'not at all' in English.

không những không ... mà còn means 'not only not... but also...' and is used for strong contrast and progression.

chả is a casual way to say 'not' or 'not at all,' often with a tone of indifference or emphasis.

nào có is used to strongly deny or refute what someone else has said, similar to 'No way' or 'There's no such thing.'

làm gì có is a strongly colloquial way to contradict or refute something, meaning 'No way' or 'How could there be.'

chưa hề emphasizes that something has never happened up to now.

không mấy expresses a low degree, meaning 'not very' or 'not much.'

'có gì đâu' is used to downplay a situation, meaning 'it's nothing.'

'có phải đâu' is used in spoken Vietnamese to strongly deny or refute something, similar to 'definitely not' or 'not at all' in English.

hết rồi indicates that something is used up, a state has ended, or an action is completed with nothing left.

chẳng còn expresses that a state no longer exists, with a stronger and more colloquial tone than không còn.

The pattern không ... đâu mà is used in spoken Vietnamese to refute or reassure, indicating that something is not as the other person thinks.

đâu có is a colloquial negation often used to refute someone’s assumption.

không phải lúc nào cũng indicates that something does not happen in all cases or every time.