ne...personne
Nobody with Ne...personne
Use ne...personne to say 'nobody' or 'no one'. Unlike ne...pas, the word personne often moves to the very end of the verb phrase.
How It Works
The negation ne...personne is used to negate people. It has several specific rules for placement:
- Simple Tenses: It surrounds the verb like a sandwich.
Je ne vois personne. (I see no one.) - Compound Tenses: Unlike pas, personne comes after the past participle.
Je n'ai vu personne. (I saw no one.) - Infinitives: It follows the infinitive verb.
Je ne veux voir personne. (I don't want to see anyone.) - With Prepositions: Personne follows the preposition.
Je ne parle à personne. (I am talking to no one.) - As a Subject: It starts the sentence, followed by ne.
Personne ne sait. (Nobody knows.)
Important Distinction: Do not confuse the negative pronoun personne (nobody) with the noun la personne (the person). The noun requires an article and is always feminine, while the negative pronoun is used with ne and always takes masculine singular agreement for adjectives.
Note on Adjectives: If you want to say 'nobody interesting,' you must use de before the adjective: personne d'intéressant.
In casual spoken French, the ne is frequently dropped: J'ai vu personne.
Examples (5)
- Je ne connais personne ici.
I don't know anyone here.
Word by Word: I (negation) know nobody here.
In the present tense, 'ne' and 'personne' surround the conjugated verb.
- Personne n'est venu à la fête.
Nobody came to the party.
Word by Word: Nobody (negation) is come to the party.
When 'personne' is the subject, it starts the sentence and is followed by 'ne'.
- Nous n'avons invité personne.
We didn't invite anyone.
Word by Word: We (negation) have invited nobody.
In the passé composé, 'personne' is placed after the past participle 'invité'.
- Il ne veut parler à personne.
He doesn't want to talk to anyone.
Word by Word: He (negation) wants to talk to nobody.
When used with an infinitive, 'personne' follows the infinitive verb.
- Je n'ai trouvé personne de disponible.
I found nobody available.
Word by Word: I (negation) have found nobody of available.
When an adjective follows 'personne', you must use 'de' before the adjective.
Common Mistakes
Placing 'personne' before the past participle in compound tenses.
Je n'ai personne vu.Je n'ai vu personne.Learners often confuse 'personne' with 'pas' or 'rien'. While 'rien' goes before the past participle, 'personne' must go after it.
Using 'pas' and 'personne' together.
Je ne vois pas personne.Je ne vois personne.In French, you cannot use two negative words like 'pas' and 'personne' to negate the same verb. 'Personne' replaces 'pas'.
Forgetting 'de' (and elision) before an adjective.
Il n'y a personne intéressant.Il n'y a personne d'intéressant.When 'personne' is modified by an adjective, the preposition 'de' is required. Remember to use elision (d') if the adjective starts with a vowel.
How It Connects
Learn This First
To learn 'ne...personne', you first need to be comfortable with basic French negation using 'ne...pas'. You also need to understand how compound tenses like the passé composé are formed and negated, because 'personne' behaves differently than 'pas' or 'rien' by following the past participle instead of the auxiliary verb.
- Negating a compound tense
Since 'personne' has unique placement rules in compound tenses (moving after the past participle), the learner must first understand how standard negation is placed in the passé composé.
Level 2 - qui (interrogatif)Who with Qui
The concept of 'personne' (nobody) is the negative counterpart to 'qui' (who) or 'quelqu'un' (someone), making it functionally related to identifying people.
Level 1
Related Patterns
- ne...pasBasic Negation with Ne...pas
The basic negation pattern which 'ne...personne' builds upon.
Level 1 - ne...rienNothing with Ne...rien
Another negative pronoun ('nothing') that has different placement rules in compound tenses.
Level 2 - Dropping ne in casual speech
Explains why you will often hear 'personne' used without 'ne' in everyday conversation.
Level 4 - quelqu'unSomeone with Quelqu'un
The positive counterpart ('someone') to 'personne' ('no one').
Level 2
Words in This Pattern
Practice ne...personne in Bubblegum
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