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I was wondering if someone could tell me the natural way of saying "I don't
think X". The reason is I wrote the following sentence:

> 普通の食品店で売っていると思いません。
>
> I don't think it's sold at the normal grocery store

However this was corrected to:

> 普通のスーパーでは売ってないと思うよ。

For the most part I think I understand the corrections. But what I cannot
understand is why `売っていると思いません` was changed to `売ってないと思う`. I don't really see
a difference here outside of emphasis / focus. To me `売っていると思いません` reads as "
**I don't think** it's sold" and `売ってないと思う` reads as "I think it's **not
sold** " in English. And in the end, they ultimately have the same meaning to
me.

So was this actually needed / a valid correction? Is it more natural to say
`negative statementと思う` in this case? I have never been corrected using
`○○と思いません` before and have used it quite often.
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negation
Natural way of saying "I don't think X"
There are _countless_ things that you "don't think"; but only a select few of
them are worth mentioning. By bringing them into consideration for discussion,
you inherently think _about_ them, and thus consciously have a thought to the
contrary.

I would say that Japanese is simply being more logical than English here (not
a difficult feat; but also, especially when it comes to negation I find that
Japanese is pretty logically rigorous e.g. see how しかない works). "I don't
think" is just one of those English set phrases that Japanese doesn't really
reflect. It's a particular form of understatement - we generally _really do_
mean that we consciously disbelieve X, even though the literal meaning admits
the middle ground of simply not having considered the question. I'm sure you
can reflect that kind of understatement in Japanese, but I think you'd have to
be _even more_ roundabout.

While I wouldn't be too surprised to learn that I'm missing something and my
exposure isn't broad enough, I just can't recall hearing anything like と思いません
in my Japanese immersion; that sounds about as unnatural to me as おはよう御座いません.
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2023-04-16T20:09:48.503
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I will try to add some understanding. Note the difference:

> I think it is not sold.

> I do not think it is sold.

Notice that there really is not a difference. However, English and Japanese
_are not_ equivalent languages. You may hear the negative 思いません used trying to
get agreement, such as

> いい天気だと思いませんか。

Otherwise, if you are expressing your thoughts, you will use the positive 思う;
**note** , however, that if you use the negative, you are saying "I do not
think [that],"

> ここで売っていると思いません。

It says...well, something correct in English. However, this is not commonly
said. If you want to speak with natives, you have to follow accepted patterns
of speech. It is similar to how from English we want to use pronouns, yet in
Japanese it is not allowed (or is inappropriate) in most contexts even though
it technically is correct when translated.
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The most natural way to say what you meant would be:

> 普通の食品店では売っていないと思います。

Using 思うよ instead of 思います is just a question of style. I agree with your
teacher that the sentence sounds more natural with は marking 普通の食品店で to add a
sense of contrast.

The original sentence is not wrong, but it sounds like you are specifically
denying or disagreeing the statement, or someone’s earlier claim, that
whatever is referred to is sold at ordinary grocery stores, rather than
stating what you think.
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1. I don't think it's sold at the normal grocery store.  
普通のスーパーで売っているとは思いません。

  2. I think it's not sold at the normal grocery store.  
普通のスーパーでは売っていないと思います。

Both are correct sentences, and they convey the same basic meaning. However, I
have heard that English speakers prefer 1 (negation applied to think/思う),
whereas Japanese speakers prefer 2 (negation applied to sold/売っている).
Ultimately, I think this is a matter of convention, and you have to get used
to this fact.

In the Japanese sense, when you say 売っているとは思いません, it gives off a nuance,
although subtle, as if you're unnecessarily negating the other person's
thoughts ("such an idea is wrong"). 売っていないと思います is neutral and safer in this
regard. In particular, 売っていないと思います is much more natural when the listener has
no assumption about where it is sold, for
example:「ローズマリーが必要ですが、普通のスーパーでは売っていないと思うのでデパートで買ってきてください。」

**EDIT:** After reading the comments, I just wanted to add this:

  1. 彼女は彼が好きだとは思いません。  
I don't think she likes him.

  2. 彼女は彼が好きではないと思います。  
I think she does not like him.

Both are correct and natural sentences at least in Japanese. In Japanese,
Option 1 probably means she does not like or dislike him in particular,
whereas Option 2 probably means she actively dislikes him. So there are useful
applications for both options. I thought there would be similar differences in
English in a case like this, but I might be mistaken.
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