～ないで下(くだ)さいPlease don't (Polite request)

In casual speech, ください can be omitted, resulting in the request finishing in で

Structure

Verb［ないで］+ ください
Politeness Levels

Details

Part of Speech
Expression
Word Type
Auxiliary Verb
Register
Polite

About ないでください

ないでください is an expression that is used to politely ask someone 'not' to do something. It is a combination of the casual negative form of a verb, the で particle, and ください (the conjunctive form of くださる).

ください is classified as honorific language, a type of polite speech that is used to refer to the actions of other people. The ください form of くださる is used almost exclusively for making requests. くださる is the honorific language equivalent of くれる.

In friendly conversation, ください may be omitted from this expression, and the で form itself can be used as a very casual way of saying 'please don't do (A)'.

Caution

Although ください is the polite form of くれる, ください is considered the base form of this phrase, and ないでくれ (the conjunctive form of くれる) would be considered far too casual in most situations.

Synonyms

Antonyms

Examples

--:--

行(い)かないでください。

Please don't go.

ここでサッカーをしないでください。

Please don't play soccer here.

泣(な)かないでください。

Please don't cry.

一人(ひとり)にしないでください。

Please don't leave me alone.

それを食(た)べないでください。

Please don't eat that.

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Online
- ～ないでください
  E-Japanese
- Negative requests. Very briefly covered
  Tae Kim
- ないでください
  JLPTSensei
- Don't do ~ (ないでください)
  Japanese Ammo

Offline
- Genki I
  Page 157
- Genki I 2nd Edition
  Page 194
- Marugoto Elementary 1 (A2) Rikai
  Page 140
- みんなの日本語 I
  Page 110 [CH 17]
- [DBJG] A Dictionary of Basic Japanese Grammar
  Page 209
- Tae Kim's Japanese Grammar Guide
  Page 179
- [AIAIJ] An Integrated Approach to Intermediate Japanese
  Page 53
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ないでください – Grammar Discussion

Most Recent Replies (9 in total)

durtle9831
There is actually a really similar grammar point that explains the thing i got confused about in a broader application. Hope this helps someone.
- ないで | Japanese Grammar SRS .
KrisV70
I often get this grammar point wrong ないでください
て+は+いけません
Is the construction I use.

I am saying you mustn’t play soccer here if I understand it correctly.
And it is still polite.

What am I missing here?
Wimble
Apologies if this is the wrong place, but for the example sentence:
トイレに行くのは忘れないでください。
Is the の in 行くのは used for nominalisation?
If so, does 忘れる need to act on a “noun phrase” and does this extend to all transitive verbs?