ようとしない
- 1Someone refuses or is unwilling to do something, as observed from their behavior.Ex. 1
- 2A thing or natural event without a will shows no sign of happening, as in 雨がやもうとしない.
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A neutral pattern used in conversation and writing, usually to describe another person who will not act despite expectations or urging, often with a note of frustration or criticism, as toward a stubborn adult or a fussy child. With non-volitional subjects it describes something showing no sign of happening, often with impatience. Unlike plain negation with ない, it describes an observed unwillingness or lack of any sign of the event starting.
Learners often use it for their own intentions; for yourself, expressions like つもりはない sound more natural.
Note that it conveys unwillingness, or no sign of happening, rather than simply stating that an action did not occur.
Do not attach としない to the plain or ます-stem form; it must follow the volitional form, as in 食べよう.
- ようとするN3「ようとする」 means to try or make an effort to do something (often without success), and can also mean 'to be about to...'; 「ようとしない」 is its negative, meaning one refuses to do it, and with natural phenomena it means 'still won't...'. The two cannot be interchanged.
- たがるN4「たがる」 means someone else wants to do something (currently or habitually) and attaches to the ます-stem; its negative 「たがらない」 describes someone showing signs of not wanting to do it, while 「ようとしない」 attaches to the volitional form and means refusing to take action, often with dissatisfaction. The two should not be interchanged.
- まいN2「まい」 expresses a negative resolve of 'will absolutely not...' or the conjecture 'probably won't...', with a stiff, written-register tone; 「ようとしない」 attaches to the volitional form, is stylistically neutral, and describes others refusing to act. The two cannot be interchanged.
- ようがない / ようもないN2「ようがない／ようもない」 attaches to a verb's ます-stem (ます removed) and means there is objectively no way to do it — it would be impossible even if one were to want to — and can also express a degree so extreme it defies description; 「ようとしない」 means subjectively refusing to act. The two cannot be interchanged.
- がるN4「がる」 attaches to adjective stems or 「たい」 with the い removed, and describes desires, emotions, or feelings that others display outwardly; 「ようとしない」 attaches to the volitional form and means refusing to act. 「行きたがらない」 leans toward not wanting to go, while 「行こうとしない」 leans toward not going.
ようとする means 'try to / be about to', and ようとしない is its negation, while たがる and がる describe another person's visible desire or feelings rather than visible unwillingness. まい is a formal, literary negative volition often expressing the speaker's own resolve, and ようがない / ようもない express that there is no way to do something (impossibility), not refusal.
