Lesson 14: Saying No (ne... pas)
Ne… pas — Saying No · A0 → A1 · Part 2 · Everyday Actions
You will learn how to make any French sentence negative by wrapping the verb with ne … pas. You will learn where the pas goes with a simple verb, with être, with avoir, and with two verbs together. You will also learn to answer questions with a polite No, and to change un / une / du into de in negative sentences.
In this lesson
- the negative
- ne… pas
- negation with être / avoir / -ER verbs
- negative answers
Vocabulary
| French | Meaning | Say it | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| ne … pas | not (the negative frame) | nuh … pa نُہ … پا | Two words that hug the verb: ne + verb + pas. |
| je ne parle pas | I do not speak | zhuh nuh parl pa ژُ نُہ پارل پا | In real speech: 'shuhn parl pa' — the e of ne drops. |
| je n'aime pas | I do not like | zhuh nem pa ژُ نیم پا | ne becomes n' before a vowel: n'aime = nem. |
| je ne sais pas | I don't know | zhuh nuh say pa ژُ نُہ سے پا | Said fast it sounds like 'shuhn say pa'. A super-common sentence. |
| personne | nobody / no one | pehr-son پیرسون | Used with ne: il n'y a personne. |
| rien | nothing | ryan رْیاں | Nasal sound. Je ne comprends rien = I understand nothing. |
| jamais | never | zha-meh ژامے | Je ne travaille jamais le samedi. |
| plus | no longer / no more | plü پلُو | In the negative this word is 'plü', not 'ploo'. The s is silent. |
| un chat | a cat | uhn sha اُن شا | Masculine noun. Used below to show un → de in the negative. |
| un chien | a dog | uhn shyan اُن شْیاں | Masculine. Je n'ai pas de chien. |
| du café | some coffee | dü ka-fay دُو کافے | du = some. It becomes de in a negative sentence. |
| d'accord | all right / agreed | da-kor داکور | Perfect for agreeing with a negative statement. |
| je ne veux pas | I don't want | zhuh nuh vuh pa ژُ نُہ وُہ پا | Je ne veux pas travailler = I don't want to work. |
| anglais | English (language) | ahn-gleh انگلے | Je ne parle pas anglais = I don't speak English. |
Pronunciation
| Word | Sounds like | Slowly | How to make the sound |
|---|---|---|---|
| je ne parle pas | shuhn parl pa | zhuh ... nuh ... parl ... pa | The e of ne is not pronounced at all when you speak naturally. It collapses into the je: 'shuhn'. You still write it. |
| je n'aime pas | zhuh nem pa | zhuh ... nem ... pa | ne + aime join into n'aime = one syllable 'nem'. Never say 'nuh em'. |
| je ne sais pas | shuhn say pa | zhuh ... nuh ... say ... pa | Said fast this is three quick syllables: shuhn-say-pa. The sais sounds like 'say'. |
| je n'ai pas de chat | zhuh nay pa duh sha | zhuh ... nay ... pa ... duh ... sha | Watch the change: un chat becomes de chat after a negative. And the final t of chat is silent. |
| je ne veux pas travailler | shuhn vuh pa tra-vay | zhuh nuh vuh ... pa ... tra-va-yay | The pas must come before travailler. In fast speech it glues to veux: 'vuh-pa'. |
| je ne bois jamais de thé | shuhn bwa zha-meh duh tay | zhuh nuh bwa ... zha-meh ... duh tay | jamais has a silent s: 'zha-meh'. Never 'ja-mays'. |
The most important sound in this lesson is the disappearing e of ne. Say 'zhuh nuh' at first, then speed it up to 'shuhn'. Both are correct — the fast one is how French people really talk.
Grammar
The ne … pas sandwich
To make a sentence negative, French puts ne in front of the verb and pas after it. The verb is the filling of the sandwich. Je parle becomes je ne parle pas. In everyday speech the e of ne disappears, so je ne parle pas is said 'shuhn parl pa'. Before a vowel ne becomes n': je n'aime pas, je n'écoute pas. English uses do not, but French has no 'do' — it just wraps the verb.
Where does PAS go? (simple verb, être, avoir, two verbs)
With one verb, ne … pas wraps that verb: je ne mange pas. With être and avoir, it wraps them too: je ne suis pas grand, je n'ai pas de temps. But when you have TWO verbs and the second one is an infinitive, the pas goes BEFORE the infinitive, not after the first verb. Correct: je ne veux pas travailler. Wrong: je ne veux travailler pas. Think of the sandwich closing right after the verb you are really negating.
Examples
| French | English | Say it |
|---|---|---|
| Je ne parl{e} pas anglais. | I don't speak English. | zhuh nuh parl pa ahn-gleh |
| Je n'aim{e} pas le café. | I don't like coffee. | zhuh nem pa luh ka-fay |
| Je ne sais pas. | I don't know. | zhuh nuh say pa |
| Tu ne travaill{es} pas aujourd'hui ? | You are not working today? | tü nuh tra-vay pa o-zhoor-dwee ↗ |
| Il n'habit{e} pas à Paris. | He doesn't live in Paris. | eel na-beet pa a pa-ree |
| Nous ne sommes pas fatigués. | We are not tired. | noo nuh som pa fa-tee-gay |
| Je n'ai pas de chat. | I don't have a cat. | zhuh nay pa duh sha |
| Elle n'a pas de voiture. | She doesn't have a car. | el na pa duh vwa-tür |
| Je ne veux pas travailler. | I don't want to work. | zhuh nuh vuh pa tra-va-yay |
| Je ne veux pas manger maintenant. | I don't want to eat now. | zhuh nuh vuh pa mahn-zhay man-tuh-nahn |
| Il n'y a personne. | There is nobody. | eel nya pehr-son |
| Je ne comprends rien. | I understand nothing. | zhuh nuh kom-prahn ryan |
| Je ne bois jamais de thé. | I never drink tea. | zhuh nuh bwa zha-meh duh tay |
| Je n'écoute plus la radio. | I don't listen to the radio any more. | zhuh nay-koot plü la ra-dyo |
| Non, je ne parle pas anglais. | No, I don't speak English. | non, zhuh nuh parl pa ahn-gleh |
| Ce n'est pas grave. | It's not a problem. | suh neh pa grav |
| Je n'ai pas faim. | I am not hungry. | zhuh nay pa fan |
| D'accord, je ne fume pas. | All right, I don't smoke. | da-kor, zhuh nuh fü-muh pa |
Dialogue: At the language school — first day
Notice how the receptionist softens every refusal with désolé or ce n'est pas grave. French negatives are usually wrapped in politeness.
| French | English | Say it | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reception | Bonjour ! Vous parlez français ? | Hello! Do you speak French? | bon-zhoor, voo par-lay frahn-seh ↗ |
| Omar | Non, je ne parle pas encore, mais j'étudie. | No, I don't speak yet, but I am studying. | non, zhuh nuh parl pa ahn-kor, meh zhay-tü-dee |
| Reception | Ce n'est pas grave. Vous avez un cours à trois heures ? | It's not a problem. Do you have a class at three o'clock? | suh neh pa grav, voo za-vay un koor a trwa z-ur ↗ |
| Omar | Je ne sais pas. Je n'ai pas de papier. | I don't know. I don't have any paper. | zhuh nuh say pa, zhuh nay pa duh pa-pyay |
| Reception | Voilà. Vous n'habitez pas loin ? | Here you are. You don't live far? | vwa-la, voo na-bee-tay pa lwan ↗ |
| Omar | Non, je n'habite pas loin. Je ne suis pas fatigué. | No, I don't live far. I am not tired. | non, zhuh na-beet pa lwan, zhuh nuh swee pa fa-tee-gay |
| Reception | Alors parfait ! À trois heures. D'accord ? | Perfect then! At three o'clock. All right? | a-lor par-feh, a trwa z-ur, da-kor ↗ |
| Omar | D'accord. Merci beaucoup ! | All right. Thank you very much! | da-kor, mehr-see bo-koo |
Say it out loud
- Je ne parle pas anglais. — I don't speak English. Start slowly, then try 'shuhn parl pa'.
- Je n'aime pas le café. — I don't like coffee. n'aime = one syllable, 'nem'.
- Je ne sais pas. — I don't know. This is the sentence you will use most in France.
- Je ne travaille pas aujourd'hui. — I am not working today. aujourd'hui is 'o-zhoor-dwee'.
- Je n'ai pas de chat. — I don't have a cat. un chat → de chat in the negative.
- Je ne veux pas travailler. — I don't want to work. pas comes before travailler.
- Je ne comprends rien. — I understand nothing. rien is nasal — one breath through the nose.
- Je ne bois jamais de thé. — I never drink tea. jamais = 'zha-meh', silent s.
- Non, je ne suis pas fatigué. — No, I am not tired. ne wraps suis, not pas after fatigué.
- Ce n'est pas grave, je ne fume pas. — It's not a problem, I don't smoke. Say both halves smoothly.
Listening practice: A phone call about a new flat
Allô, salut Nadia ! Ça va ? Moi, je ne vais pas bien. Je n'aime pas mon appartement. Il n'est pas grand et il n'y a pas de soleil. Je ne suis pas loin du bureau, d'accord, mais je n'ai pas de parc ici. Le samedi, je ne travaille pas. Le dimanche, je ne travaille pas non plus. Je cherche un nouveau appartement. Je ne sais pas encore. À bientôt !
Hello, hi Nadia! How are you? Me, I'm not doing well. I don't like my flat. It isn't big and there is no sun. I am not far from the office, all right, but I don't have a park here. On Saturday, I don't work. On Sunday, I don't work either. I am looking for a new flat. I don't know yet. See you soon!
Questions
- How is the speaker feeling? Not well / Very well / Tired → Not well
- What doesn't the speaker like? The city / The flat / The food → The flat
- What is missing outside? A shop / A park / A bus stop → A park
- Does the speaker work on Sunday? Yes / No / Only in the morning → No
- What is the speaker looking for? A new job / A new flat / A new car → A new flat
Remember this
- Negative = ne + verb + pas. Je parle → je ne parle pas.
- In everyday speech the e of ne disappears: 'shuhn parl pa'.
- Before a vowel, ne becomes n': je n'aime pas, je n'écoute pas, je n'ai pas.
- With être and avoir, ne … pas wraps them: je ne suis pas, je n'ai pas.
- With two verbs, pas goes before the infinitive: je ne veux pas travailler.
- un / une / du become de after a negative: j'ai un chat → je n'ai pas de chat.
- personne = nobody, rien = nothing, jamais = never, plus = no longer. All take ne.
- A negative answer keeps the full sandwich: Non, je ne parle pas anglais.
- Ce n'est pas grave = it's not a problem. D'accord = all right.
- Never put pas at the very end of a sentence.
Common mistakes
| Instead of | Say | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Je parle pas. (writing it without ne) | Je ne parle pas. | In fast speech you may hear 'je parle pas', but in writing the ne is required. Always write the full sandwich. |
| Je ne veux travailler pas. | Je ne veux pas travailler. | With two verbs, pas goes before the infinitive, not at the end of the sentence. |
| Je n'ai pas un chat. | Je n'ai pas de chat. | After a negative, un / une / du become de. This is a fixed rule. |
| Je ne suis pas parle français. | Je ne parle pas français. | Never add être before a normal verb. One verb is enough. |
| je ne sais pas pronounced 'zhuh nuh s-ay-ss pa' | shuhn say pa | The e of ne vanishes in natural speech and the s of sais is silent. Three quick syllables are enough. |
Practice questions
- How do you make a French sentence negative? Put pas at the end / Put ne before the verb and pas after it / Put non before the verb / Add 'do not' before the verb — Put ne before the verb and pas after it
- Which sentence is correct? Je parle ne pas anglais. / Je ne parle pas anglais. / Je pas ne parle anglais. / Je ne pas parle anglais. — Je ne parle pas anglais.
- What happens to ne before a vowel? It becomes n' / It disappears / It becomes non / It stays ne — It becomes n'
- Complete: Je ____ pas de chat. ai / n'ai / suis / ne ai — n'ai
- Where does pas go in 'I don't want to work'? Je ne veux travailler pas. / Je ne veux pas travailler. / Je ne pas veux travailler. / Je veux ne pas travailler. — Je ne veux pas travailler.
- How do you say 'I am not tired'? Je ne suis pas fatigué. / Je ne pas suis fatigué. / Je suis ne pas fatigué. / Je ne fatigue pas. — Je ne suis pas fatigué.
- Change to the negative: 'J'ai un chat.' Je n'ai pas un chat. / Je n'ai pas de chat. / Je ne ai pas chat. / Je n'ai un pas chat. — Je n'ai pas de chat.
- What does 'Je ne travaille jamais le samedi' mean? I never work on Saturdays / I don't want to work on Saturday / I am not working today / I sometimes work on Saturdays — I never work on Saturdays
- Which is the correct negative answer to 'Tu parles français ?' Non, je ne parle pas français. / Non, je parle pas non français. / Non, je non parle français. / Non, ne je parle français pas. — Non, je ne parle pas français.
- 'Il n'y a personne' means: There is someone / There is nobody / There is nothing / There is a person — There is nobody
Homework (15 minutes)
1) Take these five positive sentences and write the negative version of each: Je parle français. / J'aime le thé. / Je travaille le samedi. / J'ai un chien. / Je veux manger. 2) Say each negative sentence out loud twice: once slowly with 'ne', once fast with the disappearing e. 3) Write four things you never do and four things you don't like, using ne … jamais and ne … pas. 4) Record yourself saying 'je ne sais pas' ten times until it sounds like one smooth word.
Lesson 14 of 45 · Part 2 · Everyday Actions · See the full A0 → A2 roadmap · Français A0 → A2