Japanese Grammar: めったに～ない (Mettani… nai)

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Japanese Grammar: めったに～ない (Mettani… nai)
Meaning & Usage

✨ Basic Meaning

Rarely, seldom, or hardly ever.

🎯 Primary Function

To emphasize that the frequency of an action or state is extremely low.

📋 Grammar Structure

めったに + Verb (Negative Form)
めったに + I-adjective (Negative Form)
めったに + Na-adjective (Negative Form)
めったに + [Predicate in Negative Form]

🎭 Usage Contexts

🏢 Formal Situations

Used in business reports or polite conversations to describe rare events.

😊 Informal Situations

Commonly used with friends to talk about personal habits or experiences.

✍️ Written Language

Used in essays and articles to describe statistics or rare occurrences.

🗣️ Spoken Language

Very common in daily speech to emphasize ‘almost never’.

💡 Common Applications

Describing Habits
Used to describe behavioral patterns that almost never occur.
Example: 彼はめったに遅刻しない。 (He rarely comes late.)
Natural Phenomena
Used to describe rare occurrences in nature or environments.
Example: この島では雨がめったに降らない。 (It rarely rains on this island.)
Adjectival Use
The phrase ‘めったにない’ can modify a noun to mean ‘a rare/extraordinary thing’.
Example: めったにない機会 (A rare opportunity)
📊
Frequency
High in both conversation and writing to emphasize rarity.
🎚️
Difficulty
JLPT N3 (Intermediate)
Tag:

Related Kanji

JLPT N3 Kanji List

Related Vocabulary

JLPT N3 Vocabulary List
Example Sentences
Example #1
彼はめったに怒らない。
Furigana: かれはめったにおこらない。
Romaji: Kare wa mettani okoranai.
English: He rarely gets angry.
Example #2
この辺りでは雪はめったに降らない。
Furigana: このあたりではゆきはめったにふらない。
Romaji: Kono atari dewa yuki wa mettani furanai.
English: It rarely snows in this area.
Example #3
めったにないチャンスだから、逃さないで。
Furigana: めったにないチャンスだから、のがさないで。
Romaji: Mettani nai chansu dakara, nogasanaide.
English: This is a rare opportunity, so don’t miss it.
Example #4
忙しくて、最近はめったに外食をしません。
Furigana: いそがしくて、さいきんはめったにがいしょくをしません。
Romaji: Isogashikute, saikin wa mettani gaishoku o shimasen.
English: I’ve been busy lately, so I rarely eat out.
Example #5
祖父はめったに病気をしない。
Furigana: そふはめったにびょうきをしない。
Romaji: Sōfu wa mettani byōki o shinai.
English: My grandfather rarely gets sick.
Example #6
この店はとても人気で、めったに予約が取れない。
Furigana: このみせはとてもにんきで、めったによやくがとれない。
Romaji: Kono mise wa totemo ninki de, mettani yoyaku ga torenai.
English: This restaurant is so popular that you can rarely get a reservation.
Example #7
彼は自分のプライベートについてめったに話さない。
Furigana: かれはじぶんのプライベートについてめったにはなさない。
Romaji: Kare wa jibun no puraibēto ni tsuite mettani hanasanai.
English: He rarely talks about his private life.
Example #8
私はめったにお酒を飲みません。
Furigana: わたしはめったにおさけをのみません。
Romaji: Watashi wa mettani osake o nomimasen.
English: I rarely drink alcohol.
Example #9
そんなに高い果物は、めったに買いません。
Furigana: そんなにたかいくだものは、めったにかいません。
Romaji: Sonna ni takai kudamono wa, mettani kaimasen.
English: I rarely buy such expensive fruit.
Example #10
めったにテレビを見ないので、最近の芸能人は分かりません。
Furigana: めったにテレビをみないので、さいきんのげいのうじんはわかりません。
Romaji: Mettani terebi o minai node, saikin no geinōjin wa wakarimasen.
English: I rarely watch TV, so I don’t know any recent celebrities.
Notes & Nuances

📌 Important Points

Frequency level
While ‘tamani’ means ‘occasionally’ (positive), ‘mettani’ emphasizes that the occurrence is much less frequent and must be negative.
Example: たまに映画を見ます。 vs めったに映画を見ません。
Set phrase use
The negative ‘nai’ is part of the set phrase ‘mettani nai’ when describing something as ‘extraordinary’.
Example: めったにない名作だ。 (It is a rare masterpiece.)

⚠️ Common Mistakes

❌ めったに食べる。 (I rarely eat it – Incorrect)
✅ めったに食べない。 (I rarely eat it.)
‘Mettani’ must always be followed by a negative form. It cannot be used with positive verbs.

🏛️ Cultural Context

Politeness Level: Neutral. It can be used in both desu/masu and dictionary forms.
Social Situations: Safe to use in any social setting to describe low frequency.
Regional Variations: Standard across Japan.

🔍 Subtle Differences

めったに～ない vs あまり～ない
‘Mettani’ indicates a much lower frequency (almost zero) than ‘Amari’ (not very much).
When to use: Use ‘Mettani’ when you want to emphasize that something is truly rare.
めったに～ない vs ほとんど～ない
‘Hotondo…nai’ means ‘almost not’ in terms of quantity or frequency, while ‘Mettani’ specifically targets frequency in time.
When to use: Use ‘Hotondo’ for amount/degree and ‘Mettani’ for how often something happens.

📝 Conjugation Notes

When modifying a noun directly, use the form ‘めったにない’ (e.g., めったにないチャンス).

🔊 Pronunciation Tips

The ‘tt’ is a double consonant (sokuon), so make sure to have a short pause between ‘me’ and ‘ta’.

🧠 Memory Tips

Think of ‘Mettani’ as ‘Metta (Many) + ni + Nai (Not)’. Although the kanji origin suggests ‘not many times’, simply associate it with ‘Rarely’ followed by a ‘NO’ (negative).

Other Grammar

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