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FRENCH GRAMMAR


 
 

NEGATION / LA NEGATION

  1. English equivalents: not, never, none, neither, nor,no one, etc.

  2. French generally forms negatives by sandwiching theconjugated verb between a ne and one of severalother words (often pas), according to what one wantsto express:

 
Construction   Examples
 

ne...pas

(not)

 

Je n'aime pas ça!

(I don't like that!)

 

ne...rien

(nothing)

 

Je ne regrette rien.

(I regret nothing.)

 

ne...personne

(nobody)

 

Il ne donne des fleurs à personne.

(He gives no one flowers.)

 

ne...jamais

(never)

 

Tu n'es jamais à I'heure!

(You're never on time!)

 

ne...plus

(no more, not any longer)

 

Ellesn'y vont plus.

(They don't go there any longer.)

 

ne...ni...ni

(neither/nor with nouns, adjectives, and adverbs; verbs usene...ni...ne)

 

Tu n'as ni argent ni esprit.

(You've got neither money nor wit.)

Je ne ris ni ne pleure.

(I'm neither laughing nor crying.)

 

ne...aucun(e)

(none, no one, not any)

 

Je ne souris à aucun type.

(I'm not smiling at any guy.)

 

ne...que

(only)

 

Nous ne voyons que des fleurs.

(We only see flowers.)

 

ne...guère

(scarcely)—literary

 

Nous n'y allons guère.

(We scarcely go there.)



  1. Use nealone with cesser, oser, pouvoir, savoir. Je n'ose y penser.(I don't dare think of it.)

  2. Two of these elements can be combined:Jen'ai jamais rien fait.(I never did anything.)

  3. The non-neelement can be used without a verb: Fuir? Jamais!(Flee? Never!)

  4. Jamaiscan be used with a verb but without neto mean ever: Peux-tu jamais me pardonner?(Can you ever forgive me?).