It looks like a negative question (“isn’t it?”), but in this use it is not really asking anything. It means “you know how…”, setting up shared ground before the story: ラーメン食うじゃないですか = “you know when you eat ramen…”. Comedians open countless bits with it.
Polite enough for coworkers. Overused, it can sound pushy, as if the listener should already know.
One person keeps trying different things on another person and rejects each one, saying it doesn't suit them.
the one that suits you best is what's left in the end, right?
Textbook最終的に一番似合うものが残りますよね。"残るじゃないですか" isn't negative; it presents the logic as obvious and seeks agreement, like "残りますよね". "の" stands for "もの".
Someone presents a trial batch of mushrooms they made, and the other person takes a close look.
It's a bad-looking color, isn't it?
Textbook良くない色をしていますよね。Not a real negative: "〜じゃないですか" points out something obvious, like "〜ですよね". "色をしている" also drops "を" and "い" ("色してる").
A songwriter says people should know the famous songs they made, and offers to play the most famous one.
This is Pornhub, isn't it?
Textbookこれはポルノハブですよね。Instead of 「ですよね」, the speaker uses the negative question 「じゃないですか」 (from 「ではないですか」) to mean 'isn't this…?' — not a denial.
One person says their slightly odd sideburns shouldn't matter, but the other person disagrees.
Unlike clothes or hairstyles, sideburns don't have a clear reference point, you know?
Textbookもみあげは服装や髪型とは違って、明確な基準点がありませんよね。「〜ないじゃないですか」 isn't a double negative: 「じゃないですか」 just asks for agreement, like textbook 「〜ですよね」 ('you know how…').
A parent talks about how their daughter and a kid named Baba keep ending up in the same class.
And on top of that, I hear that Baba kid and my kid went head to head in the class rep election, you know?
Textbookしかも、その馬場さんという子とうちの子が学級委員の選挙で争ったそうですよね。Instead of '〜そうですよね', the speaker uses '〜そうじゃないですか', a rhetorical 'you know' presenting the fact as shared knowledge.
From other routines in the library. Automatic transcripts, not yet checked line by line.
〜じゃないですか means “you know how…”. It looks like a negative question (“isn’t it?”), but in this use it is not really asking anything. It means “you know how…”, setting up shared ground before the story: ラーメン食うじゃないですか = “you know when you eat ramen…”. Comedians open countless bits with it.
With friends: OK. With coworkers: OK. With a boss or teacher: careful. Polite enough for coworkers. Overused, it can sound pushy, as if the listener should already know.
In 1,905 live comedy routines, 〜じゃないですか appears in 653 lines from 150 comedians.