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JLPT N4Adverbs

全然(ぜんぜん) — Absolutely not / Not at all / (casual: totally)

Traditionally used with negative predicates meaning "not at all." In modern casual usage, increasingly used with positives meaning "totally."

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Pro lessonUNIT 86 · ADVERBS

Structure · 形

全然 + [Negative predicate] | 全然 + [Positive] (casual)

Examples · 例文

  • 全然知らなかった。

    Zenzen shiranakatta.

    I had no idea at all.

    全然 + 知らなかった (negative past) = not at all

  • その映画、全然面白くない。

    Sono eiga, zenzen omoshiroku nai.

    That movie is not interesting at all.

    全然 + 面白くない (not interesting)

  • 今週は忙しくて、全然休めませんでした。

    Konshuu wa isogashikute, zenzen yasumemasen deshita.

    This week I was so busy I couldn't rest at all.

    全然 + 休めませんでした (negative potential) = couldn't rest at all

Usage notes · 注意

  • Traditional: 全然〜ない (not at all).
  • Casual/modern: 全然いい (totally fine), 全然大丈夫 (absolutely okay) — positive usage is common among young speakers but still non-standard in formal contexts.
  • Degree: 全然〜ない > あまり〜ない (not very much).

Commonly confused with

The JLPT rarely asks whether you recognise a pattern — it asks which of several similar patterns fits. These are the ones 全然 is tested against.

vsあまり〜ない

全然〜ない = 'not at all' (total negation); あまり〜ない = 'not very / not much' (partial negation, weaker).

vsちっとも〜ない

ちっとも〜ない is a near-synonym of 全然〜ない ('not in the least') but is more emphatic/colloquial and used only with negatives, never with positives.

More adverbs

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