Negation of past actions with "meiyou"

Level

A1 / HSK1
Level

A1
Level

HSK1
Similar to
- Negation of "you" with "mei" (A1)
- Standard negation with "bu" (A1)
- Comparing "bu" and "mei" (A2)
Similar to
- Comparing "bu" and "mei" (HSK1)
- Negation of "you" with "mei" (HSK1)
- Standard negation with "bu" (HSK1)
Used for

Denying and refusing, Referring to the past
Keywords

没有, 没

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:

Subject + 没有 + Verb

Examples

我没有去酒吧。Wǒ méiyǒu qù jiǔbā.I didn't go to a bar.
他们没有说话。Tāmen méiyǒu shuōhuà.They didn't speak.
我没有喝你的啤酒。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.
昨天我没有睡觉。Zuótiān wǒ méiyǒu shuìjiào.Yesterday I didn't sleep.
我没有买水果。Wǒ méiyǒu mǎi shuǐguǒ.I didn't buy fruit.
我太太没有做饭。Wǒ tàitài méiyǒu zuò fàn.My wife didn't cook.
宝宝没有哭。Bǎobǎo méiyǒu kū.The baby didn't cry.
你没有生病。Nǐ méiyǒu shēngbìng.You didn't get sick.
我没有学习中文。Wǒ méiyǒu xuéxí Zhōngwén.I didn't study Chinese.

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

我没去酒吧。Wǒ méi qù jiǔbā.I didn't go to bar.
他们没说话。Tāmen méi shuōhuà.They didn't speak.
我没喝你的啤酒。Wǒ méi hē nǐ de píjiǔ.I didn't drink your beer.
她没看到你。Tā méi kàn dào nǐ.She didn't see you.
我没吃早饭。Wǒ méi chī zǎofàn.I didn't eat breakfast.
昨天我没睡觉。Zuótiān wǒ méi shuìjiào.Yesterday I didn't sleep.
我没买水果。Wǒ méi mǎi shuǐguǒ.I didn't buy fruit.
我太太没做饭。Wǒ tàitài méi zuò fàn.My wife didn't cook.
宝宝没哭。Bǎobǎo méi kū.The baby didn't cry.
你没生病。Nǐ méi shēngbìng.You didn't get sick.
我没学习中文。Wǒ méi xuéxí Zhōngwén.I didn't study Chinese.

Remember that 了 is not used with 没有. 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.

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