Conversational Spanish Course - Negative Words - Palabras Negativas (Viajeros)
No quiero hacerlo. - I don't want to do it.
No tengo un lápiz. - I don't have a pencil.
Elena no está aquí. - Elena is not here.
¿No tienes hambre? - Aren't you hungry?
Spanish also has many other negative words that are used along with "no" or without it. A list of negative words is provided in the table below.
nadie - nobody, no one
ninguno - none, no one
nunca - never
jamás - never
tampoco - neither, not either
Nadie entiende. - Nobody understands.
Ninguna tienda tiene lo que quiero. - No store has what I want.
Nunca bebí la cerveza. - We never drink beer
Jamás te olvidaré. - I will never forget you.
No lo quiero. - I don't like it.
English
Juan doesn't need anything. (correct)
Juan doesn't need nothing. (incorrect)
Spanish
Juan no necesita nada. (correct)
Juan no necesita algo. (incorrect)
Unlike English, Spanish allows for the use of double, and sometimes even triple negatives.
English: I don't have nothing to do. (incorrect)
Spanish translation: No tengo nada que hacer. (correct)
Let's look at some examples of sentences that use more than one negative expression:
No tienes nada que hacer - You don't have anything to do.
Ese niño no se lleva bien con nadie. - That boy doesn't get along well with anyone.
Gabriel nunca ha contribuido nada a la clase. - Gabriel has never contributed anything to the class.
Nunca debes hablar con ningún extraño. - You should never speak to any stranger.
¿No tienes nada que decir? - Don't you have anything to say?
Category: Travel Spanish