Don't want you to misunderstand with 〜ないでほしい

Grammar Explanation: Want you do to something with 〜てほしい

After failing to trick Nishikata with a prank, Tagaki asks him if he doesn’t like her teasing him.

高木(たかぎ):: 「勘違(かんちが)いしないでほしいんだけど、西片(にしかた)が好(す)きだからやってるんだよ。」; “I don't want you to misunderstand. It's because I like you that I do it.”

Key Points

〜ないでほしい = I don’t want you to…
- This is the negative て-form pattern used to express a hoped-for non-action.
- Here Takagi means she does not want Nishikata to misunderstand her teasing.
勘違(かんちが)いしないでほしい
- The verb is 勘違(かんちが)いする, “to misunderstand”.
- So the phrase means “I don’t want you to get the wrong idea.”
んだけど softens the lead-in
- 「ないでほしいんだけど」 sounds gentler than a blunt command.
- It works as a soft setup before she explains her real reason.