なかなか〜ない nakanaka ~ nai

なかなか〜ない（nakanaka ~ nai）means “not easily ~; hardly ~ (despite effort/expectation)”. なかなか with a negative verb means something is hard to achieve — it 'just won't' happen even though you want or expect it to. Formation: なかなか + V-ない（否定形）

not easily ~; hardly ~ (despite effort/expectation)

N4

Formation

なかなか + V-ない（否定形）

Explanation

なかなか with a negative verb means something is hard to achieve — it 'just won't' happen even though you want or expect it to. It conveys the speaker's frustration or impatience that the result is slow to come. Always paired with a negative.

Examples

バスがなかなかこない。
ばすがなかなかこない。
The bus just won't come.
むずかしくて、しゅくだいがなかなかおわらない。
むずかしくて、しゅくだいがなかなかおわらない。
It's hard, so my homework just won't get finished.

Note

In affirmative sentences なかなか means 'quite/considerably' (e.g. なかなかいい). The 'hardly' meaning needs the negative.

FAQ

なかなか〜ない — what does it mean and how is it used?

not easily ~; hardly ~ (despite effort/expectation). なかなか with a negative verb means something is hard to achieve — it 'just won't' happen even though you want or expect it to. It conveys the speaker's frustration or impatience that the result is slow to come. Always paired with a negative.

なかなか〜ない — how do you form it?

なかなか + V-ない（否定形）

なかなか〜ない — any usage notes?

In affirmative sentences なかなか means 'quite/considerably' (e.g. なかなかいい). The 'hardly' meaning needs the negative.

Learn in the app →