What is the で part in ではありません？


Ok, this might be more complicated or less complicated than I'm making it out
to be but I'm assuming this question will be made up of two unrelated
components but I can't figure it out so I'm shooting my shot here. I also
don't know how exactly to word what I'm asking.

I'm using Rosetta Stone as a jumping-off point for learning Japanese, frankly,
I am not too pleased with how it "teaches", but my work is paying for it so
here I am. My question may be caused by the way they format but I can't figure
out what I need to google to get an answer.

In the grammar module of lesson three they highlight the new concept they're
teaching. So the way they format it is:

私は医者 **ではありません** and 私は教師 **です**

Now, I know that the です part is to indicate politeness, is the で in ではありません
there for the same reason? Is it there just to make ありません polite?

AND THEN! In the grammar module for lesson two they introduced いません, it's
preceded by て, is that because it's attached to the verb before it? (I know it
can also be で with some verbs, which is where I think my confusion overall
stems from, i.e. the で from my first question and the て／で here have different
functions).

Is で a part of ありません, or is it there because it's following a noun? Why is it
there? And on that note, correct me if I'm wrong, but contextually I'm
assuming いません is for actions and ありません is for things not performing actions.
Context: The ありません was used in the sentence, "I am not a doctor", and the いません
was used in the sentence, "They are not sleeping".

Am I even headed vaguely in the right direction or am I completely
misunderstanding everything?

_(and before anyone says anything about Rosetta Stone being good or bad, I'm
aware, it's just an extra tool I am using alongside other resources mostly for
the kanji.)_




Good on you for giving Japanese a go!

Ya, Japanese and English are very different, structurally, and some of what's
happening in Japanese makes more sense if you know some of the history (well,
English has those bits too, as do most languages, for that matter ), so I'll
give you short answers, and then a fuller explanation.

# The short of it

> _... is the で in ではありません there for the same reason? Is it there just to make
> ありません polite?_

No. The で in ではありません is a separate word. The politeness comes from the ません
ending on ありません.

> _Is で a part of ありません?_

No, see above.

> _... or is it there because it's following a noun?_ Why is it there?

Yes. More on that in the longer explanation below.

> _And on that note, correct me if I'm wrong, but contextually I'm assuming
> いません is for actions and ありません is for things not performing actions._

Broadly speaking, yes, this is a good initial understanding.

> _Am I even headed vaguely in the right direction or am I completely
> misunderstanding everything?_

Sounds like you've got a good start, for the most part.

# The long of it

To really explain what's going on takes some doing. Let's dive in.

## Part 1: The で in ではありません

> > 私は医者ではありません and 私は教師です
>
> _Now, I know that the です part is to indicate politeness, is the で in ではありません
> there for the same reason? Is it there just to make ありません polite?_

The で is not there _" just to make ありません polite"_. :) The ます (positive) and
ません (negative) verb endings are the polite parts here.

The で in ではありません (and in the so-called "plain form" ではない, also seen as
contracted form じゃない) is, technically speaking, best thought of as the
_conjunctive form_ ("`[VERB]`, _and_ `[whatever comes next]`") of the modern
_copula_ ("to be" verb). The polite form of the copula is です, and the plain
form is だ.

The modern だ・です copula in Japanese is a synthetic word -- it was basically
cobbled together from disparate dialectal variations in the late 1800s as part
of the nation-building efforts during the Meiji period. Due in part to this
synthetic origin, the modern copula is irregular, and it doesn't conjugate
fully. While other verbs have explicit negative forms (like plain する has しない,
and polite します has しません), the copula だ・です doesn't have a negative, per se --
instead, we have to use the conjunctive form of the copula (this で) and then
add the otherwise-distinct word ない ("there isn't; not", which inflects like
any other _-i_ adjective) for the plain form, or ありません ("there isn't; not")
for the polite form.

### What is that は doing there?

When we negate a statement (when we say that X isn't Y), we are often saying
that X isn't Y _in contrast to_ what X actually is. Due to this underlying
contrastive nuance, in Japanese, we often add the particle は into this mix.
This は particle is usually explained in introductory grammars as the particle
used to mark the topic of a statement, and it is also used to introduce a
contrast. So instead of just で + ない or ありません, we get で + は + ない・ありません.

### A note about the copula

Above, I describe だ・です as the "modern copula". In older stages of the Japanese
language, the main copula (again, that's the "to be" verb) was ある・あります -- or,
classically speaking, あり. Nowadays, ある・あります is usually used to mean "there is
something (in a place, by a person, etc.)", expressing the existence of
something in a specific context, rather than just "to be / is". That said, the
original very basic "to be" copular meaning still shows up to some extent in
modern Japanese, such as in the ありません part ("is not") of polite-form ではありません.

I wrote a longer post explaining だ・です and its relationship to あり over
[here](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/questions/62645/%e3%81%a7%e3%81%99-what-
is-it-really-is-my-analysis-correct/62647#62647), in answer to the question,
[_" 「です」, what is it really? Is my analysis
correct?"_](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/questions/62645/%E3%81%A7%E3%81%99-what-
is-it-really-is-my-analysis-correct/)

> _Is で a part of ありません, or is it there because it's following a noun? Why is
> it there?_

Put simply:

  * No, the で is not part of ありません: this で is a separate verb, the modern copula だ (plain form) and です (polite form), in the conjunctive conjugation.

  * Yes, it is there because it is following a noun. To say that "X is Y", that one noun (or noun phrase) **is** another noun (or noun phrase), you need the copula to equate the two. To negate the copula, you need to conjugate the copula into the conjunctive form, and then add the separate piece ない (plain form) or ありません (polite form).

## Part 2: ～て・～で + いません

The ～て ending for verbs is the so-called _conjunctive form_ , much like we saw
above with で as the _conjunctive form_ for the copula だ・です.

In English, your basic conjunction is "and" -- _" A, **and** B..."_

In Japanese, the _-te_ form is the main conjunction for verbs.

You ask about verbs ending in ～で as well. This is ultimately a shift from ～て
due to a kind of phonetic contraction.

  * Historically, older forms of Japanese were more regular than the modern language, and the conjunctive forms for all verbs ended in ～て. You would convert verb into the _-te_ form by adding this as a suffix to the verb base conjugated as the so-called 連用形【れんようけい】 -- literally the 連【れん】 "attaches, connects to" + 用【よう】 "inflecting" (short for 用言【ようげん】, "inflecting word") + 形【けい】 "form", or the "form for connecting to an inflecting word" (suffixes like conjunctive ～て and polite ～ます are historically treated as inflecting words). In modern educational materials written in English about the Japanese language, this is often introduced as the " _masu_ stem", since this is the form of the verb base used to add the ～ます stem indicating polite register. The _masu_ stem for よむ ("to read") is よみ～, so in older Japanese, the conjunctive form of よむ ("to read") was よみて. Likewise, およぐ ("to swim") became およぎ～, and the conjunctive form was およぎて.
  * Due to sound shifts over time, those verbs where the _masu_ stem ends in _-i_ , **and** where the preceding consonant is //m//, //b//, //n//, or //g//, the _-i_ vowel [elided](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elision) (dropped out), and the nasality of the consonant abbreviated to just the ん sound and caused the following _-te_ suffix to voice to _-de_ instead.  
So よみて or _yomite_ shifted to something like _yomte_ , then to _yonde_. And
およぎて or _oyogite_ shifted to something like _oyogte_ , then to _oyonde_. Etc.,
etc.

  * Note that **this ～で after verb stems is _not_ the same thing as the copular で.**  
Although they both serve a similar grammatical function (both indicate a
conjunction, "this AND that"), and although they both derive in part from the
same original piece (see Old Japanese completion-aspect suffix つ if you're
really interested), the copular で and the verb suffix ～で are different things.

## Part 3: いません vs. ありません

> _...I'm assuming いません is for actions and ありません is for things not performing
> actions. Context: The ありません was used in the sentence, "I am not a doctor",
> and the いません was used in the sentence, "They are not sleeping"._

Broadly, this is correct -- います (positive) and いません (negative) are used after
the conjunctive ～て form of a non-copular verb describing an action or state,
and あります (positive) and ありません (negative) are used after the conjunctive で form
of the copula describing existence.

There are also statements where a noun is followed by the topic particle は or
the subject particle が, and then either of these verbs. This is used to state
that something simply exists, that "there is XYZ", rather than to state that
one thing is another thing.

→ It's important to note that, in modern Japanese, there's the wrinkle that
いる・います is used for describing the existence of a person or other animate
objects capable of intent (like cats or dogs or hamsters), while ある・あります is
used for describing the existence of inanimate objects incapable of intent
(like books or pillows or houses).

Whether you use で or は・が changes the meanings too.

A couple examples might help.

  * ✔ 本【ほん】があります。 → " **There is** a book." → describes the existence of a book.
  * ✖ 本【ほん】がいます。 → *" **There is** a book." → bad grammar, since a book is inanimate and cannot have intent. Listeners will probably be able to understand this, but will find it weird: this makes it sound like the book has animacy.
  * ✔ 本【ほん】であります。 → "[It] **is** a book." → describes the existence of "it" as a book.
  * ✖ 本【ほん】でいます。 → *"[It] **is** a book." → bad grammar, since the "it" that is a book is inanimate and cannot have intent. Listeners will probably be able to understand this, but will find it weird. If the implied topic in this context is a person, this sentence might be understandable as "[the unstated person] **is being** a book", which is a weird statement, but maybe a bit better grammatically? 

* * *

I hope the above helps. If you find anything confusing, please comment and I
can try to address any remaining question marks.




Good on you for giving Japanese a go!

Ya, Japanese and English are very different, structurally, and some of what's
happening in Japanese makes more sense if you know some of the history (well,
English has those bits too, as do most languages, for that matter ), so I'll
give you short answers, and then a fuller explanation.

# The short of it

> _... is the で in ではありません there for the same reason? Is it there just to make
> ありません polite?_

No. The で in ではありません is a separate word. The politeness comes from the ません
ending on ありません.

> _Is で a part of ありません?_

No, see above.

> _... or is it there because it's following a noun?_ Why is it there?

Yes. More on that in the longer explanation below.

> _And on that note, correct me if I'm wrong, but contextually I'm assuming
> いません is for actions and ありません is for things not performing actions._

Broadly speaking, yes, this is a good initial understanding.

> _Am I even headed vaguely in the right direction or am I completely
> misunderstanding everything?_

Sounds like you've got a good start, for the most part.

# The long of it

To really explain what's going on takes some doing. Let's dive in.

## Part 1: The で in ではありません

> > 私は医者ではありません and 私は教師です
>
> _Now, I know that the です part is to indicate politeness, is the で in ではありません
> there for the same reason? Is it there just to make ありません polite?_

The で is not there _" just to make ありません polite"_. :) The ます (positive) and
ません (negative) verb endings are the polite parts here.

The で in ではありません (and in the so-called "plain form" ではない, also seen as
contracted form じゃない) is, technically speaking, best thought of as the
_conjunctive form_ ("`[VERB]`, _and_ `[whatever comes next]`") of the modern
_copula_ ("to be" verb). The polite form of the copula is です, and the plain
form is だ.

The modern だ・です copula in Japanese is a synthetic word -- it was basically
cobbled together from disparate dialectal variations in the late 1800s as part
of the nation-building efforts during the Meiji period. Due in part to this
synthetic origin, the modern copula is irregular, and it doesn't conjugate
fully. While other verbs have explicit negative forms (like plain する has しない,
and polite します has しません), the copula だ・です doesn't have a negative, per se --
instead, we have to use the conjunctive form of the copula (this で) and then
add the otherwise-distinct word ない ("there isn't; not", which inflects like
any other _-i_ adjective) for the plain form, or ありません ("there isn't; not")
for the polite form.

### What is that は doing there?

When we negate a statement (when we say that X isn't Y), we are often saying
that X isn't Y _in contrast to_ what X actually is. Due to this underlying
contrastive nuance, in Japanese, we often add the particle は into this mix.
This は particle is usually explained in introductory grammars as the particle
used to mark the topic of a statement, and it is also used to introduce a
contrast. So instead of just で + ない or ありません, we get で + は + ない・ありません.

### A note about the copula

Above, I describe だ・です as the "modern copula". In older stages of the Japanese
language, the main copula (again, that's the "to be" verb) was ある・あります -- or,
classically speaking, あり. Nowadays, ある・あります is usually used to mean "there is
something (in a place, by a person, etc.)", expressing the existence of
something in a specific context, rather than just "to be / is". That said, the
original very basic "to be" copular meaning still shows up to some extent in
modern Japanese, such as in the ありません part ("is not") of polite-form ではありません.

I wrote a longer post explaining だ・です and its relationship to あり over
[here](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/questions/62645/%e3%81%a7%e3%81%99-what-
is-it-really-is-my-analysis-correct/62647#62647), in answer to the question,
[_" 「です」, what is it really? Is my analysis
correct?"_](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/questions/62645/%E3%81%A7%E3%81%99-what-
is-it-really-is-my-analysis-correct/)

> _Is で a part of ありません, or is it there because it's following a noun? Why is
> it there?_

Put simply:

  * No, the で is not part of ありません: this で is a separate verb, the modern copula だ (plain form) and です (polite form), in the conjunctive conjugation.

  * Yes, it is there because it is following a noun. To say that "X is Y", that one noun (or noun phrase) **is** another noun (or noun phrase), you need the copula to equate the two. To negate the copula, you need to conjugate the copula into the conjunctive form, and then add the separate piece ない (plain form) or ありません (polite form).

## Part 2: ～て・～で + いません

The ～て ending for verbs is the so-called _conjunctive form_ , much like we saw
above with で as the _conjunctive form_ for the copula だ・です.

In English, your basic conjunction is "and" -- _" A, **and** B..."_

In Japanese, the _-te_ form is the main conjunction for verbs.

You ask about verbs ending in ～で as well. This is ultimately a shift from ～て
due to a kind of phonetic contraction.

  * Historically, older forms of Japanese were more regular than the modern language, and the conjunctive forms for all verbs ended in ～て. You would convert verb into the _-te_ form by adding this as a suffix to the verb base conjugated as the so-called 連用形【れんようけい】 -- literally the 連【れん】 "attaches, connects to" + 用【よう】 "inflecting" (short for 用言【ようげん】, "inflecting word") + 形【けい】 "form", or the "form for connecting to an inflecting word" (suffixes like conjunctive ～て and polite ～ます are historically treated as inflecting words). In modern educational materials written in English about the Japanese language, this is often introduced as the " _masu_ stem", since this is the form of the verb base used to add the ～ます stem indicating polite register. The _masu_ stem for よむ ("to read") is よみ～, so in older Japanese, the conjunctive form of よむ ("to read") was よみて. Likewise, およぐ ("to swim") became およぎ～, and the conjunctive form was およぎて.
  * Due to sound shifts over time, those verbs where the _masu_ stem ends in _-i_ , **and** where the preceding consonant is //m//, //b//, //n//, or //g//, the _-i_ vowel [elided](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elision) (dropped out), and the nasality of the consonant abbreviated to just the ん sound and caused the following _-te_ suffix to voice to _-de_ instead.  
So よみて or _yomite_ shifted to something like _yomte_ , then to _yonde_. And
およぎて or _oyogite_ shifted to something like _oyogte_ , then to _oyonde_. Etc.,
etc.

  * Note that **this ～で after verb stems is _not_ the same thing as the copular で.**  
Although they both serve a similar grammatical function (both indicate a
conjunction, "this AND that"), and although they both derive in part from the
same original piece (see Old Japanese completion-aspect suffix つ if you're
really interested), the copular で and the verb suffix ～で are different things.

## Part 3: いません vs. ありません

> _...I'm assuming いません is for actions and ありません is for things not performing
> actions. Context: The ありません was used in the sentence, "I am not a doctor",
> and the いません was used in the sentence, "They are not sleeping"._

Broadly, this is correct -- います (positive) and いません (negative) are used after
the conjunctive ～て form of a non-copular verb describing an action or state,
and あります (positive) and ありません (negative) are used after the conjunctive で form
of the copula describing existence.

There are also statements where a noun is followed by the topic particle は or
the subject particle が, and then either of these verbs. This is used to state
that something simply exists, that "there is XYZ", rather than to state that
one thing is another thing.

→ It's important to note that, in modern Japanese, there's the wrinkle that
いる・います is used for describing the existence of a person or other animate
objects capable of intent (like cats or dogs or hamsters), while ある・あります is
used for describing the existence of inanimate objects incapable of intent
(like books or pillows or houses).

Whether you use で or は・が changes the meanings too.

A couple examples might help.

  * ✔ 本【ほん】があります。 → " **There is** a book." → describes the existence of a book.
  * ✖ 本【ほん】がいます。 → *" **There is** a book." → bad grammar, since a book is inanimate and cannot have intent. Listeners will probably be able to understand this, but will find it weird: this makes it sound like the book has animacy.
  * ✔ 本【ほん】であります。 → "[It] **is** a book." → describes the existence of "it" as a book.
  * ✖ 本【ほん】でいます。 → *"[It] **is** a book." → bad grammar, since the "it" that is a book is inanimate and cannot have intent. Listeners will probably be able to understand this, but will find it weird. If the implied topic in this context is a person, this sentence might be understandable as "[the unstated person] **is being** a book", which is a weird statement, but maybe a bit better grammatically? 

* * *

I hope the above helps. If you find anything confusing, please comment and I
can try to address any remaining question marks.

