How to interpret 全然 + positive adjective + とは思わない


As explained in [this
question](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/questions/794/%E5%85%A8%E7%84%B6-%E3%81%9C%E3%82%93%E3%81%9C%E3%82%93-with-
positive-adjective-na-adjective), I know that 全然 used with positive adjective
means "completely, entirely", while when it is used with negative
adjectives/verbs it means "not at all, absolutely not". However, I don't know
how to interpret the following dialogue (note that there's a space between 全然
and 綺麗):

> A: 私は綺麗だと思う？
>
> B: 全然 綺麗とは思わないよ。

Which of the following translations is correct?

> 1) I don't think you are entirely beautiful. [you are beautiful but you lack
> something]
>
> 2) I think you are not beautiful at all.

I think number 1 is correct, but I am not sure. Thank you for your help!




While 全然 is often used in positive sentences these days, this adverb is still
basically a [negative polarity
item](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/a/16060/5010), and it has a strong
affinity for a following _negative_ expression within the sentence. This
means, in this case, 全然 modifies 思わない, "I don't think _at all_ (that ...)"
regardless of the space or comma after it. This is also true in conversations
where you cannot use commas. The sentence has the same meaning as
綺麗だとは全然思わないよ. (Of course [commas can disambiguate
things](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/a/55857/5010) in some cases,
though)

To say Sentence 1, you need to choose another adverb and say, for example,
"すごい綺麗だとは思わないよ" or "100%綺麗だとは思わないよ". Actually these are still ambiguous, but
at least these tend to mean 1 simply because most (non-NPI) adverbs modify
something right after it.

**EDIT** : As l'électeur pointed out, 全然 can modify 綺麗 in a rare context where
someone has just used 全然 clearly in a positive sentence. In such a case, 全然綺麗と
is a direct quote and the sentence would mean something like "全然綺麗 is an
overstatement". But it's still much better to disambiguate using brackets in
writing, like:

> A: え、Cさん全然綺麗じゃん。  
>  B: 「全然綺麗」とは思わないよ。

**EDIT** : Please also recheck the usage of 全然 in positive sentences. Read
[Boaz Yaniv's answer](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/a/806/5010) in your
link. 全然 in a positive sentence is used to negate someone's prior expectation,
and it rarely translates to "completely".




> 「全然{ぜんぜん} 綺麗{きれい}とは思{おも}わないよ。」

With that **_space_** (or a comma instead), it would be most natural to assume
that 「全然」 would modify the verb 「思わない」 rather than the adjective「綺麗」. Thus,
the sentence would mean:

> "I don't think at all that (someone/something) is pretty."

If the space were not there and the sentence were uttered as a response to
another person's statement like 「全然綺麗じゃん。」(meaning "(Someone/something) is
quite pretty.") , then it could be a different story altogether.

「全然綺麗とは思わない。」, in that context, would mean "(I disagree.) I don't think
(someone/something) is all that pretty." In this case, 「全然」 modifies the
adjective 「綺麗」.

