Negation in Russian: не, нет, ни and нельзя
The Russian negative words and the rule that Russian uses double negatives.
Russian has a small set of negative words, and several of them can appear in one sentence.
The main words
| Word | Use |
|---|---|
| не (nye) | not, placed before the word it negates |
| нет (nyet) | no, and also "there is not" |
| ни (ni) | not a single, not even, in compounds |
| нельзя (nel'zya) | not allowed, impossible |
Using не
Place не before the verb:
- Я не знаю. I don't know.
- Он не работает. He doesn't work.
It can also negate other words: не сегодня (not today).
Using нет
- Вы студент? Нет. Are you a student? No.
- У меня нет времени. I have no time.
- Здесь нет магазина. There is no shop here.
After нет, the thing that is missing goes in the genitive case, as in времени and магазина.
Double negatives
Russian requires a negative with the verb as well as with words like "nothing" or "never":
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| ничего | nothing |
| никто | no one |
| никогда | never |
| нигде | nowhere |
- Я ничего не знаю. I know nothing.
- Никто не пришёл. Nobody came.
- Я никогда не был там. I have never been there.
This is correct Russian, not a mistake.
Нельзя
- Здесь нельзя курить. Smoking is not allowed here.
- Нельзя так говорить. You can't say that.
Tips
- Remember the double negative.
- Use the genitive after нет.
- Use the dictionary to check negative words.
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