conditional N3 common casualpolitewritten
〜でなくては — unless it is ~ / it must be ~
〜でなくては ・ でなくては
Builds on である
Meaning
- it must be ~ / unless it is ~ — the negative copula on a ては conditional, pointing to a requirement
Key sentence
リーダーは責任感がある人でなくては。
The leader has to be someone with a sense of responsibility.
Formation
| Attaches to | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun / na-adjective | N / na-adj + でなくては | プロ → プロでなくては |
Examples
材料は新鮮でなくては、いい料理は作れない。
Unless the ingredients are fresh, you can't make good food.
この役は彼女でなくては務まらない。
This role can only be filled by her (it has to be her).
本人でなくては、手続きができません。
Unless it's the person themselves, the procedure can't be done.
Easily confused with
〜でなければ Both mean 'unless it is ~'. でなくては tilts toward 'it has to be ~' (a requirement) and often trails off implying いけない; でなければ is the more neutral plain conditional. 〜なくてはいけない でなくては is the copula version of the なくては that builds the obligation なくてはいけない ('must'). Dropping いけない and letting でなくては stand alone keeps the 'it must be' force as a soft, trailing requirement.
Notes
- Casual speech contracts でなくては to でなくちゃ (本人でなくちゃダメ).
See 〜でなくては in real sentences
Jengo shows 〜でなくては the way you actually meet it: inside real Japanese sentences, so it sticks instead of staying an abstract rule.
Study it in JengoSources Compiled with reference to A Dictionary of Advanced Japanese Grammar.