The always-serious Yamada stealing a company computer is a story that is absolutely impossible/inconceivable.
📖 Explanation & Nuance
The phrase 「～得ない」(えない) means "impossible" or "inconceivable." It expresses a strong denial of possibility, indicating that something absolutely cannot happen or be true. You attach it to the masu-stem of a verb (連用形). 「あり得ない」is a very common fixed expression meaning "impossible" or "unbelievable." Example: いつも真面目な山田さんが会社のパソコンを盗むなんて、絶対にあり**得ない**話だ。
ある事態が起こる可能性が全くない、信じられないことを表します。動詞のマス形に「得ない（えない）」をつけます。
📝 Example Sentence
いつも真面目な山田さんが会社のパソコンを盗むなんて、絶対にあり「えない」話だ。
The always-serious Yamada stealing a company computer is a story that is absolutely impossible/inconceivable.
Practice Quiz
Verify your grammar strength for "〜えない"
Explanation (EN): The phrase 「～得ない」(えない) means \"impossible\" or \"inconceivable.\" It expresses a strong denial of possibility, indicating that something absolutely cannot happen or be true. You attach it to the masu-stem of a verb (連用形). 「あり得ない」is a very common fixed expression meaning \"impossible\" or \"unbelievable.\" Example: いつも真面目な山田さんが会社のパソコンを盗むなんて、絶対にあり**得ない**話だ。\n\nCommon Mistakes:\n❌ がたい: While '信じがたい' is normal, you cannot pair 'あり（ある）' with 'がたい' to mean impossible. The ultimate phrase for 'impossible to exist' is 'ありえない'!\n❌ づらい: 'ありづらい' would mean 'it causes me physical pain to exist'. Not what you mean at all!\n❌ まい: 'まい' means 'I bet it isn't'. If you attach it to 'あり' (ありまい) it completely breaks Japanese grammar rules.
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