Natural way of saying "I don't think X"


I was wondering if someone could tell me the natural way of saying "I don't
think X". The reason is I wrote the following sentence:

> 普通の食品店で売っていると思いません。
>
> I don't think it's sold at the normal grocery store

However this was corrected to:

> 普通のスーパーでは売ってないと思うよ。

For the most part I think I understand the corrections. But what I cannot
understand is why `売っていると思いません` was changed to `売ってないと思う`. I don't really see
a difference here outside of emphasis / focus. To me `売っていると思いません` reads as "
**I don't think** it's sold" and `売ってないと思う` reads as "I think it's **not
sold** " in English. And in the end, they ultimately have the same meaning to
me.

So was this actually needed / a valid correction? Is it more natural to say
`negative statementと思う` in this case? I have never been corrected using
`○○と思いません` before and have used it quite often.




  1. I don't think it's sold at the normal grocery store.  
普通のスーパーで売っているとは思いません。

  2. I think it's not sold at the normal grocery store.  
普通のスーパーでは売っていないと思います。

Both are correct sentences, and they convey the same basic meaning. However, I
have heard that English speakers prefer 1 (negation applied to think/思う),
whereas Japanese speakers prefer 2 (negation applied to sold/売っている).
Ultimately, I think this is a matter of convention, and you have to get used
to this fact.

In the Japanese sense, when you say 売っているとは思いません, it gives off a nuance,
although subtle, as if you're unnecessarily negating the other person's
thoughts ("such an idea is wrong"). 売っていないと思います is neutral and safer in this
regard. In particular, 売っていないと思います is much more natural when the listener has
no assumption about where it is sold, for
example:「ローズマリーが必要ですが、普通のスーパーでは売っていないと思うのでデパートで買ってきてください。」

**EDIT:** After reading the comments, I just wanted to add this:

  1. 彼女は彼が好きだとは思いません。  
I don't think she likes him.

  2. 彼女は彼が好きではないと思います。  
I think she does not like him.

Both are correct and natural sentences at least in Japanese. In Japanese,
Option 1 probably means she does not like or dislike him in particular,
whereas Option 2 probably means she actively dislikes him. So there are useful
applications for both options. I thought there would be similar differences in
English in a case like this, but I might be mistaken.




  1. I don't think it's sold at the normal grocery store.  
普通のスーパーで売っているとは思いません。

  2. I think it's not sold at the normal grocery store.  
普通のスーパーでは売っていないと思います。

Both are correct sentences, and they convey the same basic meaning. However, I
have heard that English speakers prefer 1 (negation applied to think/思う),
whereas Japanese speakers prefer 2 (negation applied to sold/売っている).
Ultimately, I think this is a matter of convention, and you have to get used
to this fact.

In the Japanese sense, when you say 売っているとは思いません, it gives off a nuance,
although subtle, as if you're unnecessarily negating the other person's
thoughts ("such an idea is wrong"). 売っていないと思います is neutral and safer in this
regard. In particular, 売っていないと思います is much more natural when the listener has
no assumption about where it is sold, for
example:「ローズマリーが必要ですが、普通のスーパーでは売っていないと思うのでデパートで買ってきてください。」

**EDIT:** After reading the comments, I just wanted to add this:

  1. 彼女は彼が好きだとは思いません。  
I don't think she likes him.

  2. 彼女は彼が好きではないと思います。  
I think she does not like him.

Both are correct and natural sentences at least in Japanese. In Japanese,
Option 1 probably means she does not like or dislike him in particular,
whereas Option 2 probably means she actively dislikes him. So there are useful
applications for both options. I thought there would be similar differences in
English in a case like this, but I might be mistaken.

