Not really
Conversation phrases, Stage 1chunk 49 of 68Agreeing and disagreeing
Disagrees gently by playing the claim down.
- sou demo nainot really; not so much
- soko made ja naiit's not that bad; not that much
- sou to mo kagiranainot necessarily
Mix-ups sou demo nai means 'not really'; sou ja nai means 'that's wrong'.
sou demo nai
polite sou demo nai desu
not really; not so much
A soft no to a question or a compliment, like 'is it hard?' or 'you must be busy'.
Much softer than chigau; also a modest way to brush off praise.
muzukashii? iya, sou demo nai yo.
Is it hard? Nah, not really.
難しい？いや、そうでもないよ。
muzukashii desu ka? iie, sou demo nai desu yo.
Is it difficult? No, not really.
難しいですか？いいえ、そうでもないですよ。
Written そうでもない · そうでもないですWho you say it and hear itHeard 245× in 3.17 million lines of film and TV subtitles
soko made ja nai
polite soko made ja nai desu
it's not that bad; not that much
Toning down what someone said, whether it was too gloomy or too glowing.
Close to sou demo nai, but it disputes how much, not whether.
taihen? iya, soko made ja nai yo.
Rough? Nah, it's not that bad.
大変？いや、そこまでじゃないよ。
taihen desu ka? iie, soko made ja nai desu yo.
Is it hard? No, it's not that bad.
大変ですか？いいえ、そこまでじゃないですよ。
Written そこまでじゃない · そこまでじゃないですWho you say it and hear itHeard 8× in 3.17 million lines of film and TV subtitles
sou to mo kagiranai
polite sou to mo kagirimasen
not necessarily
Pushing back on a general claim without flatly calling it wrong.
The wider pattern X to wa kagiranai means 'X isn't always so'.
takai kara oishii? sou to mo kagiranai yo.
Pricey means tasty? Not necessarily.
高いからおいしい？そうとも限らないよ。
sou to mo kagirimasen yo. yasukute oishii mise mo arimasu kara.
Not necessarily. There are cheap places that are good too.
そうとも限りませんよ。安くておいしい店もありますから。
Written そうとも限らない · そうともかぎらない · そうとも限りませんWho you say it and hear itHeard 225× in 3.17 million lines of film and TV subtitles