Negative
and Affirmative Clauses
...
The most common way to make
a sentence negative is to place no before the verb, cf.:
-
Juan abre una cuenta bancaria.
Juan opens a checking account.
-
Juan no abre la cuenta
bancaria.
Juan does not
open the checking account.
...
Affirmative
and negative expressions
| |
Affirmative |
Meaning
in English |
|
|
Negative |
Meaning
in English |
| |
algo |
something |
|
|
nada |
nothing |
| |
alguien |
someone |
|
|
nadie |
no
one |
| |
alguno,
-a |
someone,
some |
|
|
ninguno,
-a |
no
one, none |
| |
siempre |
always |
|
|
nunca |
never |
| |
alguna
vez |
ever |
|
|
jamás |
never |
| |
también |
also |
|
|
tampoco |
neither |
| |
todavía,
aún |
still |
|
|
ya
no |
no
longer |
| |
ya |
already |
|
|
todavía
no |
not
yet |
| |
o |
or |
|
|
ni |
nor |
| |
o…o |
either…or |
|
|
ni…ni |
neither…nor |
NOTE: In Spanish, double
negation is very common; see for details
below.
Algo
vs. Nada
Algo something
and nada nothing
are invariable and refer to things and objects, cf.:
-
Hay algo afuera.
There is something outside.
-
No hay nada en el refrigerador.
There is nothing in the refrigerator.
...
Alguien
vs. Nadie
Alguien "someone"
and
nadie "no one"
are invariable and refer to people. When alguien, nadie, alguno
and
ninguno are direct objects, they must be preceded by the personal
a
when they refer to a person.
-
Invité a alguien a salir.
I asked someone out.
-
No defiendo a nadie.
I don't defend anybody.
...
Alguno
vs. Ninguno
Alguno "someone
/ some" and ninguno "no
one / none" can refer to people or
things. Furthermore, alguno and ninguno drop the final
-o
before masculine singular nouns (similarly, uno "one"
shortens to un, and bueno "good"
to buen; see Apocoped
forms).
-
Algún día venderemos
millones.
Some day we'll sell millions.
-
Ningún producto está
fallado.
None of the products is damaged.
NOTE:
Ninguno is never
used in a plural form.
...
Alguna
vez
Alguna vez is equivalent
to "ever".
-
¿Has diseñado
alguna vez un logotipo?
-
Have you ever designed a logo?
...
The
Use of Multiple Negative
1. Whenever the negative words
nada,
nadie, nunca, tampoco, jamás,
follow the verb, no must
precede the verb, which produces a multiple negative construction, cf.;
-
No como nunca espinaca.
I never eat spinach.
2. The negative word can be placed
at the end of the sentence, cf.:
-
No como espinaca nunca.
I never eat spinach.
When the negative word precedes
the verb, the word no
is not used, cf.:
-
Nunca como espinaca.
I never eat spinach.
...
Double
No
When the answer to a question
is negative, the word no appears twice. It appears at the beginning
of the sentence and also in front of the verb, cf.:
-
-- ¿Abren ahora?
-
-- No, no abrimos hasta las
diez.
-- Are you going to open now?
-- No, we don't open until
ten.
NOTE:
Usually
the subject pronoun is omitted in the answer because the verb ending identifies
the subject, as in the example above.
...
Nunca
jamás
Nunca jamás "never
ever / never again" is one of the strongest
negative
forms.
-
Nunca jamás ganarán.
They'll never ever win.
...
Nunca
más
Nunca más is equivalent
to "never again".
-
Nunca más vi a Ana.
I have not seen Ana ever again
...
Jamás
Jamás is
used as a superlative and is equivalent to
"ever".
-
Este projecto es el más
intenso que jamás he empredido.
This project is the most intense
that I have ever undertaken.
...
También
También "also
/ too" expresses the union of two affirmative
sentences.
-
Yo quiero comer; también
ellos quieren comer.
-
I want to eat; they want to eat
too.
-
Nosotros también ganamos
la competencia.
-
We also won the competition.
...
Tampoco
Tampoco means "neither"
and is used to unite negative sentences, cf.:
-
Victoria no comió, y
yo tampoco.
Victoria didn't eat and neither
did I.
...
Ni ...
ni
Ni ... ni "neither
... nor" connects two negative constructions,
cf.:
-
No quiero ni comer ni beber.
I don't want to eat or drink.
...
Ni
siquiera / No ... ni
Ni siquiera and sometimes
No
... ni are equivalent to "not even", cf.:
-
Pedro ni siquiera me saludó.
Pedro did not even greet me.
-
Pedro no quiere ni saludarme.
Pedro doesn't even want to
greet me.
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