GrammarJLPT N5
→ (does) not ..., and
Negative Connective Form: "not doing ... (and/so)"
JLPT N5Auxiliary verbFormal
〜ず is a classical negative auxiliary verb that survives in modern Japanese as a literary and formal alternative to 〜ないで and 〜なくて. It attaches to the irrealis (未然形) stem of verbs — the same stem used before 〜ない — and negates the verb while simultaneously connecting it to a following clause, carrying the meaning "not doing something, and ..." or "not doing something, so ...". Because it functions as a connective negative, the action described by 〜ず is left undone and the sentence continues to describe what happens next, often implying cause, accompanying circumstance, or contrast. Compared to 〜ないで, which is conversational and neutral, 〜ず sounds more refined, written, or formal, and is commonly found in essays, literature, news, speeches, and set phrases like 知らず知らず (unknowingly). Note that the verb する irregularly becomes せず rather than the expected *しず. When followed by the particle に to form 〜ずに, the meaning closely parallels 〜ないで ("without doing"), but standalone 〜ず without に more closely parallels 〜なくて ("not ... and/so").
Functions
#1 Negated accompanying circumstance (not doing, and ...)
Structure
Verb (ない-stem) + ず + main clause
彼は何も言わず、部屋を出た。
Here 〜ず connects the negated action 言わない (not say) to the main clause 部屋を出た (left the room), describing the circumstance under which the main action took place. The speaker did not say anything, and in that state, he left. This is the most common use of 〜ず, functioning much like 〜ないで but with a more formal or literary tone.He left the room without saying anything.
Structures
- Verb
- Verb (ない-stem) + ず
- する (irregular)
- せず
- 来る (irregular)
- 来（こ）ず
Common mistakes
The most common mistake is conjugating する as *しず instead of the correct irregular form せず. Another frequent error is confusing 〜ず with 〜ずに; while both are negative connectives, 〜ずに (with に) more precisely means "without doing" and parallels 〜ないで, whereas standalone 〜ず can also express cause or reason, paralleling 〜なくて. Learners sometimes use 〜ず in casual conversation where 〜ないで or 〜なくて would sound more natural, since 〜ず carries a formal or literary tone. Finally, some learners attempt to attach 〜ず to adjectives or nouns, but in modern Japanese it is used almost exclusively with verbs.
Related
〜ないで〜なくて〜ずに〜ぬ〜ず〜ず