няма каго / няма чаго

Nobody to and Nothing to with Няма

Level 4Sounds Like nâma kago nâma čago

Няма каго спытаць. (There is no one to ask.) Мне няма чаго сказаць. (I have nothing to say.) Мне няма калі. (I have no time.)

How It Works

This construction says that something cannot be done because the person, thing, place or time for it is missing. It has three parts:

  • няма
  • a question word: каго, чаго, каму, чым, куды, дзе, калі
  • an infinitive: спытаць, сказаць, ісці

Няма каго спытаць. (There is no one to ask.) Няма куды ісці. (There is nowhere to go.) Няма чым пісаць. (There is nothing to write with.)

The question word's case. The question word takes the case the infinitive needs. Спытаць takes каго, пісаць with a tool takes чым, дапамагчы takes каму: Няма каму дапамагчы. (There is no one to help.)

Prepositions. A preposition stands between няма and the question word: Ёй няма з кім пагаварыць. (She has no one to talk to.) Няма пра што гаварыць. (There is nothing to talk about.)

Who lacks it. The person goes in the dative, as in other dative + infinitive sentences: Мне няма чаго сказаць. The short Мне няма калі means I have no time.

Past tense. Use не было instead of няма, as with other impersonal predicates: Учора не было каго спытаць.

One-word forms. Standard Belarusian also has the one-word forms некага, нечага, некалі with the same meaning: Мне некалі. Both sets of forms are standard. Note that некалі also means once, long ago. Do not confuse this pattern with ніхто and нічога, which say that nobody or nothing does something.

Examples (6)

  1. Няма каго спытаць.

    There is no one to ask.

    Word by Word: Is-not whom to-ask.

  2. Мне няма чаго сказаць.

    I have nothing to say.

    Word by Word: To-me is-not what to-say.

  3. Мне няма калі.

    I have no time.

    Word by Word: To-me is-not when.

  4. Няма куды ісці.

    There is nowhere to go.

    Word by Word: Is-not where-to to-go.

  5. Ёй няма з кім пагаварыць.

    She has no one to talk to.

    Word by Word: To-her is-not with whom to-talk.

  6. Учора не было каго спытаць.

    Yesterday there was no one to ask.

    Word by Word: Yesterday not was whom to-ask.

Common Mistakes

  • Putting the person in the nominative.

    Я няма чаго рабіць.
    Мне няма чаго рабіць.

    Няма is impersonal, so the person who lacks something goes in the dative: мне, табе, ёй.

  • Using нічога instead of the question word, copying English nothing to say.

    Мне няма нічога сказаць.
    Мне няма чаго сказаць.

    With an infinitive, the pattern needs the question word чаго. Нічога belongs to sentences like Я нічога не сказаў.

  • Putting the preposition before няма.

    З няма кім пагаварыць.
    Няма з кім пагаварыць.

    The preposition goes right before the question word, after няма.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

няма каго / няма чагоLevel 4Nobody to and Nothing to with Няма

Learn This First

Nobody to needs няма, negation and dative pronouns.

Words in This Pattern

нямахто