hmm, hi! i'm currently studying negative sentences but i don't get why i see 하지 and 가지 being used with 지 않다 because i thought they all meant no/not??? can you please explain to me when 하지 is used? the sentence that got me this doubt is 저는 생선을 좋아 하지 않아요. thank you!!!
Hi! I’ll just use this opportunity to make a small overview of the negative sentences in Korean 😊🌼
For your question, 하지 and 가지 are just the forms of the verbs 하다 and 가다, they cannot be used alone like this.
저는 생선을 좋아하지 않아요 is correct:
➼ 좋아하다 - to like ➽ ~지 않다 is the grammar you attach to the verb by removing 다.
With the verb 가다 (to go), you remove 다 and add 지 않다: 저는 집에 가지 않아요. = I’m not going home.
A more natural way of saying this would be by using the short negative 안 which you put in front of the verb. 저는 집에 안 가요.
~지 않다 and 안 are negative because you willingly don’t do something.
~지 못하다 and 못 are negative because you can’t do something.
A more polite way of saying that you don’t like fish instead of 저는 생선을 좋아하지 않아요 which means literally I don’t like fish would be:
➝ 저는 생선을 못 먹어요. = I can’t eat fish. Even when you’re not allergic, you can use it to express you don’t want to eat it.
Another example of the difference between 지 않다 and 지 못하다:
➝ 저는 집에 가지 않아요. = I’m not going home. ➝ 저는 집에 가지 못해요. = I can’t go home.
If you want to tell someone not to do something, you have to use ~지 말다 and there’s no short version that you put in front of the verb.
➝ 집에 가지 말아요. = Don’t go home. ➝ 생선을 먹지 마세요. = Don’t eat the fish. ➝ 나에게 말하지 마. = Don’t tell me. (informal)
If you have more questions don’t hesitate to ask💕
- Taeri
