modality N2 common casual
〜っこない — there's no way ~
〜っこない ・ っこない
Builds on 連用形（ます形）
Meaning
- there's no way ~ / couldn't possibly ~ — a casual, emphatic denial that something could happen
Key sentence
そんな難しい問題、できっこないよ。
There's no way I could do such a hard problem.
Formation
| Attaches to | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Verb ます-stem + っこない | V[ます-stem] + っこない | 勝てっこない / 分かりっこない |
Examples
今から走っても、間に合いっこない。
Even if we run now, there's no way we'll make it.
あの人が約束を守るなんて、ありっこない。
Him keeping a promise? Not a chance.
Easily confused with
Notes
- A casual contraction of 〜こと(は)ない / 〜っこ + ない. Strictly spoken language — too informal for writing or polite speech. Conveys flat refusal to believe something is possible.
See 〜っこない in real sentences
Jengo shows 〜っこない the way you actually meet it: inside real Japanese sentences, so it sticks instead of staying an abstract rule.
Study it in JengoSources Compiled from published Japanese grammar references.