x dake ja naku y (mo)

X dake ja naku Y (mo) – Not only X, but y (also)

The word dake (pronounced dah - kay) means only. Ja naku is one form of the negative present copula “to be”. Ja naku is an abbreviated version of the more formal expression for “isn’t” dewa nakute, or dewa naku. Dewa has over the years become ja for all intents and purposes. So this is a good point to ponderously remember- that as dewa tends toward the contracted form ja other Japanese words any d words may tend toward j forms when in contraction.

Examples

Ringo dake ja naku banana mo kaimashita
Not only apples but I also bought banana’s.


Towards Better Japanese
Ganbatte ne!
Do Your Best!
MakurasukiLearn Japanese, Start speaking Today! Be ahead of the class. also see http://saketalkie.blogspot.com and http://squidoo.com/phonesearch or http://squidoo.com/japanesevocabularyindex