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The meaning of arimasen (ありません) in Japanese and how to use it

Arimasen means do not have or there is not in Japanese.

This article will give you all of the knowledge you need on the Japanese word arimasen, including its Japanese definition and translation, usage, example sentences, and more!

What does arimasen mean?

The Japanese word arimasen (written ありません or 有りません) means there is not or do not have. Arimasen is the polite negative form of the verb aru (ある、有る), to exist/to have. You would usually use arimasen to say that you don’t have something or that something has run out.

ご飯がありません。
Gohan ga arimasen.
There is no rice.

私はお金がありません。
Watashi wa okane ga arimasen.
I do not have any money.

Note that the word for “I” is optional in Japanese.

当時の写真がありません。
Touji no shashin ga arimasen.
I don’t have any photos from that time.

What is the casual equivalent of arimasen?

As we have seen, arimasen is the polite form of the aru verb. To express the same meaning in a more casual way (i.e. among friends and family), you would use nai (ない、無い).

We can therefore replace arimasen with nai for the examples we looked at already.

ご飯がない。
Gohan ga nai.
There is no rice.

私はお金ががい。
Watashi wa okane ga nai.
I do not have any money.

当時の写真がない。
Touji no shashin ga nai.
I don’t have any photos from that time.

De wa arimasen meaning

When de wa (では) is added in front of it, arimasen can also stand for negative constructions in a more general sense. Here, its translation is closer to not or is not in English.

それはリンゴではありません。
Sore wa ringo de wa arimasen.
That is not an apple.

彼は日本人ではありません。
Kare wa nihon jin de wa arimasen.
He is not Japanese.

As you may have guessed by now, you can also say de wa nai (ではない) to mean the same thing but less formally.

それはリンゴではない。
Sore wa ringo de wa nai.
That is not an apple.

彼は日本人ではない。
Kare wa nihon jin de wa nai.
He is not Japanese.

Rohan
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Published by Rohan

Rohan is a professional Japanese translator and the author behind Tanukiki.com, a blog that offers Japanese language tips and insights on life in Japan. Rohan's favorite resource for learning Japanese is JapanesePod101, one of the best tools for getting started with the language. Sign up for a free lifetime account here.