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没有méi yǒuhaven't; hasn't; doesn't exist; to not have; to not be

HSK 1word

By Chinese Copilot · Last updated

没有 (méi yǒu) means "do not have," "there is not," or that an action did not happen. It is the required negative of 有, and it also negates past verbs. Never say 不有; use 没有, or the short form 没, instead. Keep 了 off sentences that use 没有 for a past action that did not occur.

What does 没有 mean?

  1. 1.

    haven't; hasn't; doesn't exist; to not have; to not beverb

What do the characters in 没有 mean?

  • 没(negative prefix for verbs) have not; not
  • 有to have; there is

How do you use 没有?

Grammar patterns

  1. 1

    没 + 有 (+ Obj.)

    Negate 有 with 没. The full form is 没有; never use 不 before 有.

  2. 2

    Subj. + 没有 / 没 + Verb

    Use 没有 or short 没 before a verb to say an action did not happen in the past. Do not add 了 after that verb.

没有 both denies having something and denies that a past action happened; short 没 is fine in speech, and 了 usually does not pair with this past negation.

Patterns

  • 没有 + Noun

    我没有钱。

    Wǒ méi yǒu qián.

    I don't have money.

  • 没有 + Verb

    昨天我没有去。

    Zuótiān wǒ méi yǒu qù.

    Yesterday I didn't go.

What are some examples of 没有 in a sentence?

  1. HSK 1

    我没有车。

    Wǒ méiyǒu chē.

    I don't have a car.

  2. HSK 1

    她没有时间。

    Tā méiyǒu shíjiān.

    She doesn't have time.

  3. HSK 1

    我没有去学校。

    Wǒ méiyǒu qù xuéxiào.

    I didn't go to school.

  4. HSK 1

    他们没有吃饭。

    Tāmen méiyǒu chī fàn.

    They didn't eat (a meal).

How is 没有 different from 不?

没有 negates 有 and past actions. 不 negates present or future actions, habits, and adjectives, and it cannot negate 有. 我没有车 is correct; 我不有车 is not.

Only 没有 fits here

我没有车。

Wǒ méi yǒu chē.

I don't have a car.

How is 没有 used in a conversation?

  1. Speaker A:

    你有车吗？

    Nǐ yǒu chē ma?

    Do you have a car?

  2. Speaker B:

    没有，我没有车。

    Méiyǒu, wǒ méiyǒu chē.

    No, I don't have a car.

  3. Speaker A:

    昨天你去学校了吗？

    Zuótiān nǐ qù xuéxiào le ma?

    Did you go to school yesterday?

  4. Speaker B:

    没有，我没有去。

    Méiyǒu, wǒ méiyǒu qù.

    No, I didn't go.

  5. Speaker A:

    你有时间吗？

    Nǐ yǒu shíjiān ma?

    Do you have time?

  6. Speaker B:

    现在没有。

    Xiànzài méiyǒu.

    Not right now.

Can you use 没有 correctly?

0 of 3 answered
  1. 1.Fill in the blank ("don't have a car"): 我___车。
  2. 2.Fill in the blank ("didn't go" — past): 我___去学校。
  3. 3.Which sentence is correct for "I don't have money"?

What should you learn next?

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English glosses on this page are adapted from CC-CEDICT, published by MDBG (snapshot 2026-10-23), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Glosses were edited for learners.