the meaning of 手は抜けない


> **こうなるとテストで露骨に手は抜けない。**

I found
[手が抜けない](https://thesaurus.weblio.jp/content/%E6%89%8B%E3%81%8C%E6%8A%9C%E3%81%91%E3%81%AA%E3%81%84)
and
[手の抜けない](https://thesaurus.weblio.jp/content/%E6%89%8B%E3%81%AE%E6%8A%9C%E3%81%91%E3%81%AA%E3%81%84),
but I couldn't find **手は抜けない**. Is there any different meaning between
**手は抜けない** and **手が抜けない**?

Thank you in advance for you kind guidance.




You should remember this set phrase as **手を抜く** , which means "to cut corners"
or "to get lazy". 抜く is a simple transitive verb that means "to omit" here.
Its variations can be explained by the basic grammar rules.

  * In potential form, を can be replaced by が, so we can say **手が抜ける** / **手が抜けない** as well as **手を抜ける** / **手を抜けない**. See: [The difference between が and を with the potential form of a verb](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/q/609/5010)
  * Since there is a rule called ga-no conversion, **手の抜けない** is also fine when it modifies something as a relative clause (e.g., 手の抜けない仕事 "the task which you cannot cut corners on"). See: [How does the の work in 「日本人の知らない日本語」?](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/q/12825/5010)
  * When this set phrase has a negation, は can be used without a strong contrastive meaning, so **手は抜けない** is also fine. See: [Why is the topic marker often used in negative statements (ではない, ～とは思わない)?](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/q/1077/5010)

In conclusion, 手は抜けない in your sentence is interchangeable with 手が抜けない and
手を抜けない (but not 手の抜けない). There is no big difference in meaning.




You should remember this set phrase as **手を抜く** , which means "to cut corners"
or "to get lazy". 抜く is a simple transitive verb that means "to omit" here.
Its variations can be explained by the basic grammar rules.

  * In potential form, を can be replaced by が, so we can say **手が抜ける** / **手が抜けない** as well as **手を抜ける** / **手を抜けない**. See: [The difference between が and を with the potential form of a verb](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/q/609/5010)
  * Since there is a rule called ga-no conversion, **手の抜けない** is also fine when it modifies something as a relative clause (e.g., 手の抜けない仕事 "the task which you cannot cut corners on"). See: [How does the の work in 「日本人の知らない日本語」?](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/q/12825/5010)
  * When this set phrase has a negation, は can be used without a strong contrastive meaning, so **手は抜けない** is also fine. See: [Why is the topic marker often used in negative statements (ではない, ～とは思わない)?](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/q/1077/5010)

In conclusion, 手は抜けない in your sentence is interchangeable with 手が抜けない and
手を抜けない (but not 手の抜けない). There is no big difference in meaning.

