Negatives
No
Nois the most common way to make a sentence negative in Spanish. It is placed before the verb.
Nunca, Jamás
Nuncaandjamásmeannever. They are placed after the verb (or afternoif it is also used).
Nadie
Nadiemeansnobodyorno one. It is typically used as the subject of the sentence and placed after the verb. If the sentence begins withno,nadieremains after the verb.
Nada
Nadameansnothing. It is usually the direct object and placed after the verb. Likenadie, it stays after the verb even if the sentence begins withno.
Tampoco
Tampocomeansneitherornot either. It is used to agree with a negative statement and is placed after the verb.
Nunca, Nadie, Nada without No
In some cases,nunca,nadie, andnadacan appear at the beginning of the sentence to emphasize the negation, and thennois omitted.
Summary
- Usenobefore the verb for simple negation.
- Usenadie(nobody) andnada(nothing) after the verb.
- Usenuncaorjamásfornever(usually after the verb).
- Usetampocoto meanneither/not either(after the verb).
- You can start a sentence withnunca,nadie, ornadafor emphasis and omitno.
- Double negatives (e.g.,no... nada,no... nadie) are grammatically correct and common in Spanish.
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Last updated: Thu Jul 17, 2025