Hanamaruhanamaru
App

Say something did not happen (plain past)

なかった is the plain past negative of a verb, saying it did not happen.

JLPTN5
[verb negative stem] + なかった~ nakatta

did not [verb] (casual speech)

なかった is the plain (casual) past negative of a verb, made by changing the ない form's final い to かった. It means "did not (do)" and is the form to use with people you are close to. In polite speech you would use ませんでした instead.

Conjugation

食べる→食べなかった
ichidan
飲む→飲まなかった
godan
行く→行かなかった
godan
する→しなかった
irregular

Tips and Common Traps

Hana· Key point

Once you know the ない form, making なかった is automatic — just swap the final い for かった. It works for every verb without exception.

Related

[verb negative stem] + ない[verb] + た