Grammar Info

N3 Lesson 4: 8/21

訳(わけ)ではないIt doesn't mean that, It is not the case, It's not like

では can be replaced with じゃ

Structure

Verb + わけではない(1)
［い］Adjective + わけではない(1)
［な］Adjective + な + わけではない(1)
Noun + の(2) + わけではない(1)

(1)わけじゃない
(2) である

Details

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About わけではない

As mentioned in the 訳(わけ)だ grammar point, わけ is a noun that is used for strong determination/conclusion in Japanese, in the same way that 'so' is in English. Naturally, this determination may sometimes be negative, as is the case with わけではない. ではない being the conjugated form of the auxiliary verb だ, the adverbial particle は, and the い-Adjective ない.

わけではない may be translated as 'it doesn't mean that (A)', or 'it's not the case that (A)'. Although, 'it is not necessarily so that it's (A)', or 'so it's not (A)' are closer to the actual nuance of わけ. わけではない can be used at the end of any sentence, so long as the word before わけ is in attributive form.

As always, では may be replaced by じゃ.

Fun Fact

わけだ and わけではない match the explanatory meaning of 'so' in English that often replaces words like 'because' and 'since'. However, as we will examine in more detail in the わけがない grammar point, わけ also matches the emphatic nuance of 'so', as can be seen in statements like 'it's SO not (A)'.

  • あなたの事(こと)が嫌(きら)いというわけではない。
    It's not necessarily so that I dislike you. (But I sure don't love you)
  • あなたの事(こと)が嫌(きら)いというわけがない。
    I so don't dislike you. (I don't dislike you at all)

Examples

--:--

    A：「北海道(ほっかいどう)といえば、Cさんによれば一年中(いちねんじゅう)寒(さむ)いらしい。」
    B：「夏(なつ)でも寒(さむ)いわけではない。」

    A: 'Speaking of Hokkaido, according to C it is cold there all year long.'
    B: 'It doesn't mean it is cold even in summer.'

    A：「天気(てんき)予報(よほう)によると明日(あした)は晴(は)れるだろう。」
    B：「雨(あめ)が降(ふ)らないわけではない。」

    A: 'The weather forecast calls for clear skies tomorrow.'
    B: 'It doesn't mean it won't rain.'

    A：「また試合(しあい)に負(ま)けたよ。もう我慢(がまん)できない！泣(な)いちゃいたい！」
    B：「いつもうまくいくわけではない。失敗(しっぱい)はつきものだ。」

    A: 'I lost a match again! I can't stand it anymore! I want to cry!'
    B: 'It is not the case that things will always turn out well. Failures are an unavoidable part of life.'

    A：「あなたはデートを忘(わす)れていたわ！私(わたし)は腹(はら)が立(た)っているから話(はな)しかけないで！」
    B：「遅(おそ)くなってしまいましたが、忘(わす)れていたわけではありませんよ。」

    A: 'You forgot about our date! I am angry, so don't speak to me!'
    B: 'I may have been late, but that doesn't mean that I forgot.'

    A：「Bさんは、来年(らいねん)結婚(けっこん)するつもりということだね。」
    B：「まだ決(き)まったわけではないから、内密(ないみつ)にお願(ねが)いします。」

    A: 'B, I heard you are going to get married next year.'
    B: 'It is not the case that it is set in stone, so please keep it a secret.'

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わけではない – Grammar Discussion

Most Recent Replies (3 in total)

  • Johnathan-Weir

    Johnathan-Weir

    So it says that じゃない can be used too but in polite speech would it be more common to say

    じゃないです or ではないです

    What about in informal speech?

  • wrt7MameLZE33wlmpCAV

    wrt7MameLZE33wlmpCAV

    I think the answer to this is “yes,” but is わけでもない more or less just a more emphatic version of わけではない? Here’s a context sentence:

    (From Boundary Gate: Daughter of Kingdom, a 1997 PC-FX game)

  • SevenZeven

    SevenZeven

    I got the following sentence in my reviews:

    A: 「また試合しあいに負まけたよ。もう我慢がまんできない！泣ないちゃいたい！」
    B：「いつもうまくいくわけではない 。失敗しっぱいはつきものだ。」

    and confused it with the “というわけではない” grammar point, which was marked as a wrong answer.

    It seems like “という” in this sentence would at the very least be redundant, so my questions are: 1) would it also be grammatically incorrect, and 2) are these actually two separate grammar points?

    Any help appreciated!

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