Key points about negative forms in Spanish
Put no in front of a verb to make it a negative.
Use nada, nadie, nunca and ninguno/a/os/as with no to form other negatives like 'no one' and 'never'.
Ninguno changes to agree with the noun it is describing.
Video - Negatives in Spanish
Watch this video to learn how to form negative sentences in Spanish.
An explanation of how to use negative constructions in Spanish
Right - so it's now or never, ahora o nunca.
Time to think about negatives.
In Spanish, if you want to say you don’t do something you can put no in front of a verb.
For example:
No fumo. - I don’t smoke.
No miento. - I don’t lie.
No robo. - I don’t steal.
No hago deporte. - I don’t do sports.
And what about other negative phrases?
Nunca means 'never'.
So nunca como verduras means I never eat vegetables.
There’s also nadie - no one.
Nadie vino a la fiesta. - No one came to the party.
And ni, which is the equivalent of both ‘neither’ and ‘nor’.
Los prisioneros no están ni en el patio ni en el cine. - The prisoners are neither in the yard nor in the cinema.
And there’s ninguno, which is 'none'.
As in, ninguno de ellos puede escapar - none of them can escape.
But if the noun we’re describing is feminine it becomes ninguna.
So, if the escapees were women, it would be:
Ninguna de ellas puede escapar.
And finally, nada, which can mean ‘nothing’ or ‘anything'.
Nada es imposible. - Nothing is impossible.
Sometimes, in Spanish, a double negative is sandwiched around a verb.
For example:
No vi nada. I didn’t see anything.
No hice nada. I didn’t do anything.
And that’s it, no more negatives, you’re outta here!
Good luck!
Using 'no' in negative sentences
The easiest way to make a sentence negative in Spanish is to put no in front of the Word used to describe an action, state of being or an occurrence..
For example:
No me gusta el libro. - I don’t like the book.
No fuimos al cine. -We didn’t go to the cinema.
No es moderno. - It’s not modern.
When answering a question, no is often repeated for emphasis.
For example:
Tienes que ir a clase a las ocho y media, ¿no? - You have to go to lessons at 8.30, don't you?
No, no tengo hermanos. - No, I don’t have any brothers or sisters.
Other negative phrases using 'no'
There are a number of negative expressions that work with no:
Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. - nothing
Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. - nobody, no one
Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. - never
For example:
No hay nada en la cocina. - There’s nothing in the kitchen.
No hay nadie en la fiesta. - There’s no one at the party.
María no trabaja nunca los sábados. - María never works on Saturdays.
Using 'ninguno'
Ninguno/a/os/as means no, none, not one, not any.
For example:
No hay ningunos barcos. - There are no boats.
Note that ninguno changes to agree with the The name of a thing such as an object, a place or a person. Nouns are often described as naming words. it is describing.
For example:
No tengo ninguna idea. - I have no idea.
The form ningún is used in front of a In Spanish, all nouns have a gender, either masculine or feminine.Refers to only one object or person. noun.
For example:
No he leído ningún artículo. - I haven’t read a single article.
Ningún reverts to ninguno when it is used on its own to refer to a masculine singular noun.
For example:
No he leído ninguno. - I haven’t read anything.
Or when it is used before the verb:
Ninguno de mis amigos está aquí. - None of my friends are here.
The position of the negative
No must go after the Replaces a noun that is the subject of the verb. and before the verb.
For example:
Mi hermano no es alto. - My brother is not tall.
Los jóvenes no están contentos. - The young people are not happy.
Never separate Replaces a noun that is the direct object of the verb. or Replace a noun which is not the direct object of the verb. object pronouns from the verb. Place the negative word in front of the pronoun.
For example:
No lo conozco. - I don’t know him.
No lo he visto. - I haven’t seen it.
The negative words nada, nadie and nunca can be used in two different ways:
- Place no before the Word used to describe an action, state of being or an occurrence. and the negative word after it.
For example:
No hay nadie en la fiesta. - There’s no one at the party.
María no trabaja nunca los sábados. - María never works on Saturdays.
No quiero ni fruta ni verduras. - I don’t want either fruit or vegetables
- Place the negative word in front of the verb and drop the no.
For example:
Nadie fue a la fiesta. - Nobody went to the party.
Nada va a pasar. - Nothing is going to happen.
Tampoco tengo un hermano. - I don’t have a brother either.
Negatives in Spanish - Mini quiz
Which is the correct negative word to complete this sentence?
No hay ____ en el parque.
There’s no one in the park.
No hay nadie en el parque.
Nadie means no one.
Quiz - Negatives in Spanish
Practise what you've learned about negatives in Spanish with this quiz.
Higher Tier - Other negative phrases
Some other useful phrases with no are:
- Ya no - no longer, not anymore
For example:
Ana ya no vive aquí. - Ana doesn’t live here anymore.
- (No) tampoco - neither
For example:
Tampoco tengo un hermano. - I don’t have a brother either.
- (No) ni … ni - neither … nor
For example:
No quiero ni fruta ni verduras. - I don’t want either fruit or vegetables.
Higher Tier - Negatives in Spanish - Mini quiz
Which is the correct negative word to complete this sentence?
______ como carne.
I never eat meat.
Nunca como carne.
Nunca means never.
Higher Tier - Quiz - Negatives in Spanish
Practise what you've learned about negatives in Spanish with this quiz.
Now you have learned about negatives in Spanish why not explore imperatives in Spanish?
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