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Place nicht just in front of adverbs of manner to negate specific aspects of a statement. The act itself is not negated. The manner (or degree) of performing it is negated.
Nicht precedes adverbs of manner or degree
| Ich habe ihn nicht ganz verstanden. |
| understood some, but not all |
| I didn’t understand him completely. |
| Ich fühle mich im allgemeinen nicht wohl. |
| feel something, but not well |
| In general, I don’t feel well. |
| Sie haben wahrscheinlich nicht viel geschlafen. |
| slept some, but not much |
| You probably didn’t sleep much. |
Prepositional phrases often express manner or degree.
| Ich will nicht mit dem Taxi fahren. |
| I’ll go, but not by taxi. |
| I don’t want to go by taxi. |
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