んじゃない vs んじゃなかった in questions


> 君が買うんじゃない?

Aren't you the one going to buy?

> 君が買うんじゃなかった?

Weren't you the one going to buy?

> 君が買ったんじゃない?

Isn't it that You are the one that bought it?

> 君が買ったんじゃなかった?

wasn't it that you are the one that bought it?

Seriously what are the differences? I've been struggling for weeks. Can
someone explain using real life situations on when to use them (all 4) with
details?




> 君が買うんじゃない?  
>  ≒ 君が買うんじゃなかった?  
>  ≒ Aren't you the one who will buy it?
>
> 君が買ったんじゃない?  
>  ≒ 君が買ったんじゃなかった?  
>  ≒ Aren't you the one who bought it?

The difference between 買う and 買った should be straightforward; whether you will
buy it in the future or you bought it in the past.

The use of た at the end of the sentence should be the tricky part, and it does
not describe something in the past, at least directly. Basically, using the
ta-form in a sentence like this would make the sentence sound more
euphemistic, mild, less-confident, or "polite".

See:

  * [「どちら様でしたか？」 - why past form?](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/q/17649/5010)
  * [Why does the waiter use past tense here](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/q/18253/5010) — some people hate this kind of unnecessarily indirect speech being used too frequently

By the way, a typical reaction to these questions would be 「あ、そうだっ **た** 」
(≒"Oh, that **is** right."), also using the "past tense". [Here's
why](https://www.wasabi-jpn.com/japanese-grammar/another-function-of-the-ta-
form-discovery-and-recall/).

English speakers also often use the "past tense" when they want to say
something politely and indirectly. Compare "I wonder if you can ..." and "I
was wondering if you could ...".




> 君が買うんじゃない?  
>  ≒ 君が買うんじゃなかった?  
>  ≒ Aren't you the one who will buy it?
>
> 君が買ったんじゃない?  
>  ≒ 君が買ったんじゃなかった?  
>  ≒ Aren't you the one who bought it?

The difference between 買う and 買った should be straightforward; whether you will
buy it in the future or you bought it in the past.

The use of た at the end of the sentence should be the tricky part, and it does
not describe something in the past, at least directly. Basically, using the
ta-form in a sentence like this would make the sentence sound more
euphemistic, mild, less-confident, or "polite".

See:

  * [「どちら様でしたか？」 - why past form?](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/q/17649/5010)
  * [Why does the waiter use past tense here](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/q/18253/5010) — some people hate this kind of unnecessarily indirect speech being used too frequently

By the way, a typical reaction to these questions would be 「あ、そうだっ **た** 」
(≒"Oh, that **is** right."), also using the "past tense". [Here's
why](https://www.wasabi-jpn.com/japanese-grammar/another-function-of-the-ta-
form-discovery-and-recall/).

English speakers also often use the "past tense" when they want to say
something politely and indirectly. Compare "I wonder if you can ..." and "I
was wondering if you could ...".

