Structure
Verb + はず + が + ない
[い]Adjective + はず + が + ない
[な]Adjective + な + はず + が + ない
Noun + の + はず + が + ない
Details
Standard
About はずがない
Like はず, coming from the kanji 筈, which suggests that something is 'bound' to be true, はずがない suggests that something is 'not bound' to be true. This expression is usually translated as 'hardly possible', 'improbable', or 'unlikely', but in reality, it is a bit weaker than these, and translates more literally to '(A) is not the only possibility'.
As はずがない (a combination of 筈, the case-marking particle が, and the い-Adjective ない) is a phrase that starts with a noun, it may be used after any word that could usually connect with a noun.
Caution
There is a big difference in nuance between ないはずだ 'bound not to', and はずがない 'not bound to'. はずがない strongly negates the (A) statement, and expresses the speaker's opinion that it is almost definitely not true. On the other hand, ないはず simply suggests that (A) being almost 100% true is not the case.
Antonyms
Related
Vocab Coverage
All Bunpro Vocab that appears on this item.
Examples
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これだけの筈がない。
It is highly unlikely that it is just this.
それはあなたのカバンの筈がない。
It is highly unlikely that that is your bag.
夏に雪が降る筈がない。
It is hardly possible for it to snow in the summer.
あのビルは古すぎなので、病院の筈がない。
Because that building is so old, it is hardly possible that it is a hospital.
こんな量を一気に食べられる筈がないよ。
It is hardly possible to eat this amount of food at once.
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Self-Study Sentences
Online
~はずがない as “there’s no way that~
「Learn Japanese」
Using negative verb forms with はず
JStackExchange
はず: Verb Negative Form 2)
MaggieSensei
Offline
Genki II 2nd Edition
Page 172
Genki II 3rd Edition
Page 168
Tae Kim's Japanese Grammar Guide
Page 306
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はずがない – Grammar Discussion
Most Recent Replies (9 in total)

Nacall24
In this article is says ないはずだ is stronger that はずがない, but in A Dictionary of Basic Japanese Grammar, it says the opposite. Which is stronger?

Eodis
It’s very confusing to me as well and I already reported the grammar point and its french translation but when I look at other resources it says はずがない is stronger. For instance here : 92はずがない [日本語参照文法]
「~ないはずだ」:できごとが起きない確信
「~はずがない」:できごとが起きる可能性はないChatGPT also says ~はずがない is stronger, and apparently A Dictionary of Basic Japanese Grammar as well.

The111
I recently did a deep dive into the difference between Xがない and Xではない. As I understand it, the former declares that X does not exist (a guarantee of absence), while the latter declares that X’s existence is not known (an absence of a guarantee). It’s kind of like the difference between gnostic atheism and agnostic atheism.
For this grammar point, the hints given in the review questions say that it’s looking for an expression that shows that (A) is not bound to be the case. I believe this wording calls for はずではない. But that answer is soft rejected, and only がない is accepted. I think that:
- (A)はずがない means A is bound not to be true (i.e. A is impossible)
- (A)はずではない means A is not bound to be true (i.e. A is not necessarily possible… often with the vibe that A is unlikely or improbable)
The hint given (and the wording in lesson) correspond to #2 above, but #1 is the...