に気がつく Conjugations

Grammar Points
#1

Hi.

For the grammar point に気がつく https://www.bunpro.jp/grammar_points/167

I am confused about the conjugations.

Looking at the example sentences:

kigatsuku

The past tense seems to conjugate as I would expect, into 気がついた (and also 気がつきました for the polite form) but the negative past tense doesn’t appear to be 気がつかなかった as I would have expected, but is 気がついていなかった. Why is this and can 気がつかなかった not be used?

Also, I assume there can never be a plain negative tense of this, as it doesn’t seem to make sense, but is a negative potential form like 気がつけない possible?

Cheers.

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#2

気がつく describes the moment that realization happens. When in the positive past tense, it’s describing that single past moment, so it’s 気がついた. However, before that moment of realization, you in an ongoing state of non-realization (rather than a single moment), represented by ている. So in the past, before your realization, it’s 気がついていなかった.

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#3

Hmm, thanks for the explanation. I guess you can’t be in a state of constant realisation, once you have realised, that’s it, you know it. I guess the weird thing is if you say “I didn’t notice”, you now have realised but I guess in the past you were in that “ongoing state of non-realisation” you mention. I guess atm it just feels like a little trick to have to remember.