How to make double negation in Spanish?

In Spanish, double negation requires placing one negative word before the verb and another after the verb. For example, imagine hearing this conversation in Spanish:

Did you notice the two negative words in the same sentence no and nada (meaning nothing)? This is an example of double negation, which is used when making negative statements in Spanish. I know it’s different from English, but using the double negation will make your Spanish sound a lot more natural. Keep reading to learn about it. ¡No tienes nada que perder! (meaning You have nothing to lose!) (Did you see what I did there?)

There are three types of negative words in Spanish: adverbs of denial, negative indefinite pronouns, and adjectives.

• Adverbs of denial

  Here we can include no (meaning no, not), which is the most common negative word in Spanish. But we can also include ni (meaning nor), ni siquiera (meaning not even), nunca (meaning never), jamás (meaning never, ever), nunca jamás (meaning never again, never ever), and tampoco (meaning neither, either). Let’s see some examples:
  

  No quiero café

  Translation: I don’t want coffee.
  Nunca he viajado a México.

  Translation: I have never traveled to Mexico.

• Negative indefinite pronouns

  Here we find the words nada (meaning anything, nothing), nadie (meaning nobody, no one, anybody, anyone), and ninguno/ninguna (meaning none, no one). Let’s see a few examples:

  Nadie vino a la fiesta.

  Translation: No one came to the party.
  Nada está bien.

  Translation: Nothing is right.

• Negative indefinite adjectives

  The only one is ningún (meaning not any, no ) with its feminine variant ninguna. Unlike the pronouns, these are always accompanied by a noun.

  Ningún estudiante entregó la tarea.

  Translation: No student turned in their homework.

Click here for a summary of negative words. To learn more about negative indefinite pronouns head over to: “What are indefinite pronouns in Spanish?”

Simple negation in Spanish is usually made with the adverb no, which is always before the main verb:

For the case of compound tenses (for example the progressive tenses or the perfect tenses), no goes before the auxiliary verb:

It’s also possible to make simple negations in Spanish with negative words other than no. In this case, these words are also placed before the verb.

• With adverbs of denial:
  

  Nunca volveré a una fiesta en esa casa.

  Translation: I will never go back to a party in that house.

• With negative indefinite pronouns:

  Nadie me habló en la fiesta.

  Translation: No one talked to me at the party.

This type of negative sentence has a double negative equivalent, which is much more commonly used. Keep reading to find out!

Similar to the simple negation, we can do it starting with no or a negative word different from no. The general rule is: one negative word goes before the verb and the other (or others) after the verb.
Let’s see each case in detail.

In Spanish, we really like to make sure our negations are emphasized enough. Double negations serve this purpose very well, but did you know we also have triple negation? I guess we just don’t like to leave things unclear!
There are two ways to do triple negation:

• Adverb of denial or negative indefinite pronoun + the phrase "nada a nadie"

  Mi hermano nunca le cuenta nada a nadie.

  Translation: My brother doesn’t ever say anything to anyone.

• Adverb of denial or negative indefinite pronoun + the phrase "nunca jamás”

  No quiero verte nunca jamás.

  Translation: I don’t ever want to see you again.

As you can see, double and triple negation are very common in Spanish. Let’s see a quick recap of the main rules:

1. Use no (or another negative word) before a conjugated verb.

2. If you want to make a double negation, a negative word should be before the verb and a second one should be after the verb.

If you want to practice double and triple negation, here are two activities we’ve created for you. ¡Hasta la próxima!