Double negatives in Spanish are very frequently used in both spoken and written language. If you do not yet how to use them, our Spanish school, El Rincón del Tándem, provides you with a short simple guide. Take a look at it! 🙂
In our previous post we have learned how to create negative sentences in Spanish. Today we are going to explore a little more of the negatives, by getting familiar with double negatives in Spanish.
Although in some languages, like English, double negatives are incorrect and not acceptable in standard and formal language, in Spanish this structure is very commonly used.
Besides being grammatically correct, double negatives are used to reinforce the double meaning of the statement and are frequently used by Spanish native speakers in formal and informal contexts.
Therefore, two negatives in a same sentence in Spanish does not convey a positive meaning. Instead, it emphasizes the negative one.
So, let’s learn more about how to form double negatives in Spanish.
First of all, double negatives are those sentences that contain two negatives. That is the negative adverb NO and another negative word.
Secondly, the negative words that can be used in the same sentence are the same we use in Spanish to create negative sentences. That is:
1. Negative adverbials: nunca (never), jamás (never/ever), tampoco (neither)
- No viajé nunca a America Latina = I have never travelled to South America
- Lucia no quiere ir a la playa tampoco = Lucia doesn’t want to go to the beach either
- ¡No volveré jamás a este restaurante! = I will never return to this restaurant!
2. Conjunction NI
- No hay ni un aparcamiento gratuito en esta zona = There is not a single free car park in this area
- Valeria no come ni carne ni pescado = Valeria eats neither meat nor fish
3. Indefinite pronouns: nadie (nobody, no one), nada (nothing), ninguno/a/os/as (none, not one)
- Esta mañana no había nadie en el despacho = No one was in the office this morning
- No me gustó ninguna de las dos películas que vimos ayer = I didn’t like either of the two films we saw yesterday
- Estoy cansada, no quiero hacer nada = I’m tired, I don’t want to do anything
4. The expression: en la/mi/tu/su vida
- Maria dijo que no volvería a fumar en su vida = Maria said she would never smoke again in her life.
VERY IMPORTANT!!!
In double negatives in Spanish, negative words must be used in a specific and strict order. To better say, the negative adverb NO must be always placed before the verb and the second negative word.
When negative word comes before the verb, the verb must be affirmative.
Let’s see some examples:
- Lucia no quiere ir a la playa tampoco = Lucia tampoco quiere ir a la playa
- No me gustó ninguna de las dos películas que vimos ayer = Ninguna de las dos películas que vimos ayer me gusto
- María dijo que no volvería a fumar en su vida = María dijo que en su vida volvería a fumar
We hope that this short article about double negatives in Spanish, will help you use this structure properly.
Laslty, we remind you that our Spanish school, El Rincón del Tándem, is happy to provide you with Spanish courses here in Valencia and help you master Spanish fast!
¡Hasta pronto!
