modality N5 common casual
なくちゃ — gotta ~
なくちゃ
Builds on なくては
Meaning
- gotta ~ / I've gotta ~ — casual contraction of なくては (must)
Key sentence
もう寝なくちゃ。
I gotta get to bed now.
Formation
| Attaches to | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| verb (negative) | V-なく + ちゃ (← なくては) | 寝なくちゃ / 帰らなくちゃ |
Variants
なきゃ — なきゃ is the parallel contraction of なければ (V-なければ → なきゃ). なくちゃ ← なくては; なきゃ ← なければ. Both drop the trailing いけない／ならない.
Examples
明日は早いから、もう帰らなくちゃ。
I've got an early start tomorrow, so I gotta head home.
宿題をやらなくちゃいけない。
I've gotta do my homework.
牛乳を買わなくちゃ忘れそう。
I gotta buy milk or I'll forget.
Easily confused with
See なくちゃ in real sentences
Jengo shows なくちゃ 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 Basic Japanese Grammar.