不 vs 没

Negation: 不 (bù) vs 没 (méi)

不 negates habits, opinions, states, and the future/present in general (我不吃辣 — I don't eat spicy food; 我不去 — I'm not going). 没(有) negates the past — that something didn't happen or doesn't exist right now — and is the only negation used with 有: 我没有钱 (I don't have money), 我昨天没去 (I didn't go yesterday). Never say 不有 — always 没有.

Examples

我不喜欢咖啡。
wǒ bù xǐ huan kā fēi
I don't like coffee.
他没有姐姐。
tā méi yǒu jiě jie
He doesn't have an older sister.
昨天我没吃早饭。
zuó tiān wǒ méi chī zǎo fàn
I didn't eat breakfast yesterday.

Common mistake

✗ Wrong: 我不有钱。

✓ Right: 我没有钱。

有 (to have) can only be negated with 没, never 不. Say 没有, not 不有.

Practice this pattern

Fill in the missing character:

我＿喜欢咖啡。

I don't like coffee.