Negation of past actions with "meiyou"

Use 没有 (méiyǒu) to negate past actions (to say that someone didn't do something, or something didn't happen).

Structure

Usually verbs can be negated with 不 (bù), but that construction is used for habitual or present actions. If the verb is about an action in the past, though, 没有 (méiyǒu) should be used:

Subj. + 没有 / 没 + Verb

Note that you can shorten 没有 (méiyǒu) to just 没 (méi).

Examples

• 我 没有 去 上班。Wǒ méiyǒu qù shàngbān.I didn't go to work.
• 他们 没有 说话。Tāmen méiyǒu shuōhuà.They didn't speak.
• 他 没有 喝 你 的 啤酒。Wǒ méiyǒu hē nǐ de píjiǔ.I didn't drink your beer.
• 她 没有 看到 你。Tā méiyǒu kàn dào nǐ.She didn't see you.
• 我 没有 吃 早饭。Wǒ méiyǒu chī zǎofàn.I didn't eat breakfast.
• 宝宝 没 哭。有 has been omitted here.Bǎobǎo méi kū.The baby didn't cry.
• 你 昨天 没 回家 吗？有 has been omitted here.Nǐ zuótiān méi huíjiā ma?You didn't go back home yesterday?
• 老板 今天 没 来 公司 吗？ Lǎobǎn jīntiān méi​ lái gōngsī ma?The boss didn't come to the company today?
• 老师 今天 没 来 上课。 Lǎoshī jīntiān méi lái shàngkè.The teacher didn't come to the class today.
• 妈妈 晚上 没 做 饭。 Māma wǎnshàng méi zuò fàn.Mom didn't cook food this evening.

Remember that 了 (le) is not used with 没有 (méiyǒu). 了 (le) marks completed actions, while 没有 (méiyǒu) is used for actions that didn't happen. These two don't work together. This is a very common mistake for beginner learners of Chinese.

See also

• Negation of "you"
• Standard negation with "bu"

Sources and further reading

Books

• Practicing HSK Grammar (语法精讲精炼) (p. 32) →buy
• 现代汉语八百词（增订本） (p. 383) →buy
• Integrated Chinese: Level 1, Part 1 (3rd ed) (pp. 138-9) →buy

Videos

• Yoyo Chinese: Negation with 没