никой/нищо/никъде + не + Verb

Negative Words with Не

Level 2Sounds Like nikoj/niŝo/nikʺde + ne

Bulgarian negative words start with ни-: никой (nobody), нищо (nothing), никъде (nowhere). When there is a verb, it also takes не: Никой не дойде. (Nobody came.)

How It Works

1. The negative words.

  • никой (nobody, no one); with a noun, it agrees: никоя жена (no woman), никое дете (no child)
  • нищо (nothing)
  • никъде (nowhere)
  • никога (never), see how often
  • никакъв (no ... at all), see some kind, no kind and all kinds

2. Always add не to the verb. Никой не дойде. (Nobody came.) Не виждам нищо. (I can't see anything.) English "anything", "anyone" and "anywhere" in a negative sentence are also ни- words in Bulgarian: Не ходя никъде. (I'm not going anywhere.)

3. Several ни- words together. You can stack them, and the verb still has one не: Никой нищо не ми каза. (Nobody told me anything.)

4. Answers without a verb. In a short answer with no verb, the ни- word stands alone: — Кой е там? — Никой. ("Who is there?" "Nobody.") — Какво правиш? — Нищо. ("What are you doing?" "Nothing.")

5. Нямам and няма. These verbs are already negative, so they need no extra не: Нямам нищо. (I have nothing.) Няма никой. (There is nobody here.)

6. The object form никого. When "nobody" is the object, careful speech uses никого: Не познавам никого тук. (I don't know anyone here.) In everyday speech you will also hear никой in this position.

Compare the positive words in someone, something and somewhere: ня- means "some", and ни- means "no".

Examples (6)

  1. Никой не дойде на срещата.

    Nobody came to the meeting.

    Никой and не together make one negative.

  2. Нищо не знам за това.

    I don't know anything about it.

    Нищо comes first for emphasis; the verb still takes не.

  3. Днес никъде не ходя.

    I'm not going anywhere today.

  4. Не познавам никого тук.

    I don't know anyone here.

    Никого is the object form of никой.

  5. Никой нищо не ми каза.

    Nobody told me anything.

    Two ни- words, one не.

  6. — Какво ти има? — Нищо.

    "What's wrong?" "Nothing."

    Without a verb, нищо stands alone.

Common Mistakes

  • Leaving out не when a ни- word comes first.

    Никой дойде.
    Никой не дойде.

    A ни- word does not negate the sentence by itself. The verb must also take не.

  • Leaving out не with никога.

    Никога съм бил в България.
    Никога не съм бил в България.

    Никога is a ни- word too, so the verb needs не: Никога не съм бил means "I have never been".

  • Adding не to a short answer that has no verb.

    — Кой се обади? — Не никой.
    — Кой се обади? — Никой.

    Не goes before a verb. In a one-word answer, никой alone already means "nobody".

How It Connects

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никой/нищо/никъде + не + VerbLevel 2Negative Words with Не

Learn This First

Negative words need the indefinites and negation with не.

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Patterns that build on this one.

Words in This Pattern

никойнищоникъдене знам