あの デカ は ぜんぜん かしこく なかった。
Ano deka wa zenzen kashikoku nakatta.
That detective wasn’t smart at all.

～くなかった is the negative past tense for i-adjectives. It’s how you say something “wasn’t” a certain way. I-adjectives are those adjectives that end with an “い” (i), like あたらしい (atarashii) for “new” or わるい (warui) for “bad.”

You see, in our world, you gotta be able to talk about what went down yesterday. Like, “Yo, that deal wasn’t good,” or “The stash wasn’t heavy enough.” That’s where ～くなかった comes in.

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Check out the table below to see how we flip the script on these ‘i’ adjectives. It’s a straight-up formula, no tricks.

English	‘i’ Adjective	Hiragana
Was not good	よ く な かっ た	yokunakatta
Was not expensive	た か く な かっ た	takakunakatta
Was not interesting	お も し ろ く な かっ た	omoshirokunakatta
Was not bad	わ る く な かっ た	warukunakatta
Was not big	お お き く な かっ た	ookikunakatta

This is how we roll. You take that ‘i’ adjective, cut off the last ‘い’ (i), and then slide in くなかった (kunakatta). Simple as that. It’s like you’re tellin’ a story ’bout yesterday. If the money wasn’t good, you’d say お金は良くなかった (okane wa yokunakatta). If the crib wasn’t big enough, you’d say 家は大きくなかった (ie wa ookikunakatta). You feel me? This ain’t no rocket science, it’s street smarts, and it keeps your story straight.

Think of it like this: ～くなかった is the verbal equivalent of a failed heist. You planned everything out, you had your crew ready, but something went wrong. The goods weren’t there, the cops weren’t sleeping, or the getaway car wasn’t fast enough. You’re reporting back to the boss about what didn’t happen.

You’re taking that “i” at the end of the adjective, kicking it out like it’s a snitch, and replacing it with ～くなかった. It’s a clean, simple operation. No mess, no fuss.

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Here are a few words from the streets you gotta know for this lesson.

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デカ (Deka)

English: Detective.

The word for a detective, see? The cops, the fuzz, the man. But not just any cop. The one’s with a badge and a gun who is out there trying to figure out who pulled the caper. They ain’t in uniform, but they’re still the law. Like when the detectives show up after a bank job in “Heat” with Al Pacino trying to find Robert De Niro. That’s a Deka.

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てきや (Tekiya)

English: Street vendor.

These are the hustlers on the street. The cats selling everything, you know? Food, knockoff gear, whatever. They run the street market, the festivals, always on the grind. They’re part of the neighborhood, the real street economy. They ain’t in any gang or anything, they’re just out there tryna eat.

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かたぎ の れんちゅう (Katagi no renchuu)

English: Straight folk; square folk; civilians.

These are the regular people, you feel me? The nine-to-fivers, the ones who follow the rules. They ain’t in the game. They ain’t hustling, they ain’t moving weight, they ain’t putting in work. They’re the ones you gotta look out for cause they can snitch you out to the police. They’re the folks who are just living their normal, everyday lives.

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しま (Shima)

English: Turf; territory.

Your Shima is your block, your neighborhood, your area. The place you run. It’s the territory you protect and where your crew does its business. Everybody knows not to step on another crew’s turf unless you want trouble. It’s all about respect and power.

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みはり (Mihari)

English: Lookout; sentry; watchman.

This is the role of the guy who stands watch. The one who keeps an eye out for the fuzz, for rival crews, or for anyone who might cause problems. When a crew is handling their business, you need a Mihari to make sure nobody sneaks up on you. You’re the eyes and ears of the crew, the first line of defense.

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Check out these sentences and see how we put that ～くなかった to work.}

デカ の くるま は わるく なかった。
Deka no kuruma wa waruku nakatta.
The cop’s car wasn’t bad.

とりひき の ばしょ は とおく なかった。
Torihiki no basho wa tooku nakatta.
The meeting place wasn’t far.

みはり は こわく なかった。
Mihari wa kowaku nakatta.
The lookout wasn’t scared.

しま の やつら は つよく なかった。
Shima no yatsura wa tsuyoku nakatta.
The guys from that turf weren’t strong.

その けいかく は よく なかった。
Sono keikaku wa yoku nakatta.
That plan wasn’t good.

あたらしい なかま は わかく なかった。
Atarashii nakama wa wakaku nakatta.
The new member wasn’t young.

てきや の にいちゃん は ただしく なかった。
Teki-ya no nii-chan wa tadashiku nakatta.
The street vendor wasn’t correct.

やつ の はなし は おもしろく なかった。
Yatsu no hanashi wa omoshiroku nakatta.
That guy’s story wasn’t interesting.

デカ の しつもん は むずかしく なかった。
Deka no shitsumon wa muzukashiku nakatta.
The detective’s questions weren’t difficult.

かたぎ の れんちゅう は しんせつじゃなかった。
Katagi no renchuu wa shinsetsuja nakatta.
The regular people weren’t kind.

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Aight, that’s the drop for today. Stay strapped and stay safe out there. Don’t be a fool.