なきゃ

なきゃ

auxiliary

have to; must (casual)

informalcolloquialcolloquialgrammatical expression

1. have to; must; need to

casual contraction of なければ (nakereba); expresses obligation or necessity; often used with ならない, いけない, or だめ (omitted in very casual speech)

行(い)かなきゃ。

I gotta go.

宿題(しゅくだい)やらなきゃいけない。

I have to do my homework.

もう帰(かえ)らなきゃだめかな。

I guess I have to go home now.

Casual contraction

なきゃ is a casual spoken contraction of なければ:

なければ → なきゃ
なければならない → なきゃならない → なきゃ (with ending often omitted)

Forms

なきゃ (most casual, ending often dropped)
なくちゃ (another casual form from なくては)
なきゃいけない / なきゃだめ (with explicit obligation)

Verb negative stem + なきゃ

行(い)く → 行(い)かなきゃ
食(た)べる → 食(た)べなきゃ
する → しなきゃ

Register

Casual speech only. Use なければなりません in formal contexts.

general

Added 2026.1.28 20:27 · Revised 2026.9.2 13:01

08500/08785_nakya