ne pas aimer
To dislike something in French is ne pas aimer.
The phrase ne pas aimer is used to express that you do not like something. If you wish to express a feeling of distaste as a noun, you can use the word antipathie.
Meaning: not to like something (verb)
Which one should you use?
While ne pas aimer is a common way to express a dislike, the verb détester is used when you want to express a much stronger, more intense feeling of hating something.
Related words
How does it change in a sentence?
The phrase is formed by placing the negation particles ne and pas around the conjugated form of the verb aimer.
What mistakes should you avoid?
Avoid using déplaire to mean 'to dislike'. In French, déplaire means 'to be unpleasant to someone' (for example, cela lui déplaît).
Did you know?
- In casual spoken French, the word ne is almost always dropped, meaning you will hear j'aime pas instead of je n'aime pas.
- The word pas literally means 'a step'. In Old French, saying ne pas was like saying 'not one step', a phrase originally used only with verbs of movement.
- To intensify ne pas aimer without using the word 'hate', French speakers often add du tout to the end of the sentence to mean 'not at all'.
Examples in context
- Pour quelque raison, son mari semblait ne pas aimer qu'elle parle de moi. En vérité, elle parlait trop à mon propos.For some reason, her husband seemed to dislike that she spoke of me. In truth, she talked too much about me.This sentence is useful for seeing how to use ne pas aimer when describing a husband's reaction.Tatoeba #1245652 by sacredceltic, translation #1245088 by Scott
- Je déteste ça.I hate that.
- J'aime pas.I don't like it.
- Je peux pas supporter ça.I can't stand that.
- C'est nul.It's rubbish.
- Il semble ne pas aimer la pluie.He seems to not like the rain.
Example conversation
Léa and Gabriel are discussing a new restaurant.
- LéaEst-ce que tu aimes ce plat, Gabriel ?Do you like this dish, Gabriel?
- GabrielNon, je commence à ne pas aimer le goût.No, I am starting to dislike the taste.
- LéaC'est dommage, moi j'adore !That's a shame, I love it!
- GabrielOn devrait commander autre chose.We should order something else.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “dislike” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries aimer, ne, pas, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
