あまり〜ない

Not Very

Level 2Sounds Like amari~nai

Use あまり with a negative verb or adjective to express that something is 'not very' or 'not particularly' true. It softens a negative statement compared to saying 'not at all'.

How It Works

1. Basic Function
あまり is an adverb that requires a negative ending to complete its meaning in this context. It indicates that the degree, quantity, or frequency of an action or state is low. While often written in hiragana, it can also be written with the kanji 余り.

2. Conjugation Rules

  • Verbs: Use the negative form (〜ない / 〜ません).
    Example: あまり食べない (Don't eat much).
  • い-Adjectives: Use the negative form (〜くない).
    Example: あまり高くない (Not very expensive).
  • な-Adjectives: Use the negative form (〜じゃない / 〜ではありません).
    Example: あまり好きじゃない (Don't like it very much).
  • Nouns: Use with a noun followed by a negative verb.
    Example: あまり時間がない (Don't have much time).

3. Nuance and Politeness
In Japanese culture, direct negatives can sometimes sound too harsh. Using あまり acts as a 'cushion,' making a refusal or a negative opinion sound more polite and less confrontational.

4. Casual Variation
In daily conversation, you will frequently hear あんまり. This is a more emotive, casual version of あまり but follows the exact same grammatical rules.

5. Note on Positive Usage
Be careful not to confuse this with あまりに (or あまりの + noun), which is used in positive sentences to mean 'excessively' or 'so much that...' (e.g., あまりに高い / 'excessively expensive').

Examples (6)

  1. 最近、あまり忙しくないです。

    I haven't been very busy lately.

    Word by Word: Recently, not very busy is.

    Here, あまり is used with the negative form of the い-adjective 忙しい（いそがしい） to show a low degree of busyness.

  2. この料理はあまり辛くないから、大丈夫だよ。

    This food isn't very spicy, so it's okay.

    Word by Word: This food as for not very spicy because, okay is.

    Using あまり makes the statement 'not spicy' less absolute, implying it might have a little kick but not much.

  3. お酒はあまり飲みません。

    I don't drink much alcohol.

    Word by Word: Alcohol as for not very drink.

    In this case, あまり refers to the frequency or quantity of drinking alcohol.

  4. 今日はあまり時間がありません。

    I don't have much time today.

    Word by Word: Today as for not much time exists-not.

    This demonstrates あまり used with a noun (時間) and a negative verb to indicate a small quantity.

  5. 日本語はまだあまり上手じゃありません。

    I'm not very good at Japanese yet.

    Word by Word: Japanese as for yet not very skillful am not.

    This uses あまり with a な-adjective (上手) in the negative form to humbly describe one's skill level.

  6. テストはあんまり難しくなかった。

    The test wasn't particularly difficult.

    Word by Word: Test as for not very difficult was not.

    This uses the casual variation 'あんまり' with the past negative form of an い-adjective.

Common Mistakes

  • Using あまり with a positive predicate to mean 'not very'.

    あまり好きです。
    あまり好きじゃないです。

    In this specific usage, あまり must be paired with a negative ending. Using it with a positive verb changes the meaning entirely to 'excessively' (usually in advanced patterns) or is simply grammatically incorrect for beginners.

  • Confusing 'not very' with 'not at all'.

    全然食べない (when you mean you eat a little)
    あまり食べない

    If you still do the action occasionally or the quality exists slightly, use あまり. 全然 (ぜんぜん) implies a total zero percent.

How It Connects

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あまり〜ないLevel 2Not Very

Learn This First

To use 'あまり〜ない' (not very), you must first understand how to conjugate verbs and adjectives into their negative forms, as 'あまり' functions as a degree adverb that specifically triggers a negative predicate.

Words in This Pattern