Components

Grammar detail: ~ずに(は)いられない

~ずに(は)いられない  cannot help but ...
113 words
My current mastery of this grammar point:
LOG IN to view grammar mastery data
Grammar games:
GRAMMAR MATCH
SENTENCE BUILDER
BOOST
verb negative stem + ず
+
に(は)
+
いられない
means
cannot help but ~
The ず negative form of a verb is an archaic form which simply uses ず instead of the modern ない. In this construction, the ず negative is combined with the negative potential form of いる (to be / to exist), which means 'cannot be'. So the construction literally means 'without doing ~, I cannot exist' - in other words, 'I cannot help but do ~'.
アルコール
いぞん
依存
しょう
さけ
まず
いられない
びょうき
病気

Alcohol dependence is an illness with which one cannot help but drink alcohol.
Japanese contains several subtly different ways of expressing 'must do ~', 'have to do ~', 'feel obliged to do ~', 'cannot help but do ~' etc (as does English!).
Please LOG IN for free flashcards

Kanji used in this grammar

イ   エ    reliant   
Please LOG IN to view this kanji's mnemonic
ソン   ゾン    suppose   
Please LOG IN to view this kanji's mnemonic
ショウ    symptoms   
Please LOG IN to view this kanji's mnemonic
シュ   さけ    さか- sake   
Please LOG IN to view this kanji's mnemonic
イン   の to drink   
Please LOG IN to view this kanji's mnemonic
ヘイ   ビョウ   やまい illness   や to fall ill   
Please LOG IN to view this kanji's mnemonic
キ   ケ    spirit   
Please LOG IN to view this kanji's mnemonic
Problem with this grammar? Question or comment? Please CONTACT US.
Kanshudo is your AI Japanese tutor, and your constant companion on the road to mastery of the Japanese language. To get started learning Japanese, just follow the study recommendations on your Dashboard. You can use Quick search (accessible using the icon at the top of every page) to look up any Japanese word, kanji or grammar point, as well as to find anything on Kanshudo quickly. For an overview, take the tour.
×