Negative Forms

Negative Statements

Negative sentences in Spanish are formed by placing no before the verb: “No voy al cine” (I do not go to the cinema).
The English double negative is avoided in Spanish. Instead use ‘ninguno’, ‘ninguna’: “No tengo ninguna manzana” (I don’t have any apple).
To say ‘nothing’, ‘nobody’, ‘neither’ or ‘never’, use nada, nadie, ninguno and nunca: “No veo a nadie” (I don’t see anyone).
The word nada (nothing) can be used to respond negatively to questions: “¿Qué haces?” “Nada.” (What are you doing? Nothing.)

Negative questions can be formed by placing no before the verb: “¿No tienes hambre?” (Aren’t you hungry?).
¿verdad? or ¿no? at the end of a sentence can make it a negative question: “Tienes hambre, ¿no?” (You’re hungry, aren’t you?).

Words such as nada (nothing), nadie (nobody), nunca (never), ni…ni (neither…nor), ninguno/a (none, not any) and jamás (never) convey negation on their own and are typically used in response to questions: “¿Quién está aquí?” “Nadie.” (Who is here? Nobody.)
Nunca and jamás are synonyms and equally mean ‘never’.

Unlike in English, double or even triple negatives are correct in Spanish: “No veo a nadie nunca” (I never see anyone).
The negative word can be placed at the beginning of the sentence for emphasis: “Nada hago bien” (I do nothing right).
The word ningún/a must agree in gender with the noun it is modifying: “Ningún libro” (Not any book).