g'n
Spoken Negatives: G'n
G'n is the short spoken form of geen (no, not any): Ek het g'n geld nie. (I have no money.)
How It Works
1. G'n = geen. Before a noun, g'n does the same job as geen. The final nie stays:
- Ek het g'n geld nie. (I have no money.)
- Ek het g'n idee nie. (I have no idea.)
- Daar was g'n mens nie. (There wasn't a soul there.)
2. Sound and spelling. G'n is one short syllable: the throaty g followed by the same sound as in 'n. The apostrophe shows that the vowels of geen have dropped out.
3. G'n as glad nie. In emphatic speech g'n can also mean not at all. You can tell because it stands before 'n or another word, not directly before a bare noun: Hy is g'n 'n dokter nie! (He's no doctor at all!)
4. Where it belongs. G'n is typical of speech, dialogue in stories and relaxed messages (spoken and written Afrikaans). In an essay, a letter to a company or an official text, write geen.
Tip: in its geen meaning, g'n goes before nouns. Before a pronoun such as hom or dit, use plain nie: Ek sien hom nie.
Examples (5)
- Ek het g'n geld nie.
I have no money.
Word by Word: I have no money not.
- Ek het g'n idee nie.
I have no idea.
Word by Word: I have no idea not.
- Daar was g'n mens nie.
There wasn't a soul there.
Word by Word: There was no person not.
- Ons het g'n tyd vir speletjies nie.
We have no time for games.
Word by Word: We have no time for games not.
- Hy is g'n 'n dokter nie!
He's no doctor at all!
Word by Word: He is not-at-all a doctor not!
Here g'n stands before 'n and means glad nie.
Common Mistakes
Leaving out the final nie.
Ek het g'n geld.Ek het g'n geld nie.Like geen, g'n still needs nie at the end of the sentence.
Using g'n before a pronoun.
Ek sien g'n hom nie.Ek sien hom nie.Like geen, g'n goes before a noun, not a pronoun. To say you don't see a person or thing named by a pronoun, use nie.
How It Connects
Learn This First
G'n is a spoken form related to geen.
Related Patterns
- glad nieNot at All: Glad Nie
In emphatic speech g'n can also mean glad nie.
Level 3 - nie ... nieDouble Negation
The final nie that g'n still needs.
Level 1 - Spoken and Written Afrikaans
Explains why g'n belongs to speech and informal writing.
Level 5 - dis/hy's/daar'sShort Forms: Dis, Hy's, Daar's
Other short forms of everyday speech.
Level 2 - iets/niksSomething and Nothing
Another negative word that takes nie at the end.
Level 2
Words in This Pattern
Practice g'n in Bubblegum
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