ne- + -dams or -ot
Without Doing Something
Latvian has no word-for-word without doing. Put ne- on a -dams or -ot form instead: Viņš aizgāja, neko neteikdams (He left without saying anything), Nedomājot viņa piekrita (She agreed without thinking).
How It Works
1. Without doing. English without + -ing becomes a negative participle:
- Viņš aizgāja, neko neteikdams. (He left without saying anything.)
- Viņa izgāja no mājas, neaizslēgdama durvis. (She left the house without locking the door.)
- Nedomājot viņa piekrita. (She agreed without thinking.)
Do not use bez with a verb. Bez goes with nouns: bez domāšanas (without thinking) is possible, but bez domāt is not Latvian (see bez + genitive).
2. -dams or -ot? Use -dams when the subject does it and make it agree: neteikdams (he), neteikdama (she), neteikdami (they). Use -ot when the doer is general or not the subject (see -dams versus -ot). Reflexive verbs take -oties: Neatskatoties viņš devās prom (He went away without looking back).
3. Double negatives are required. As in negative words nekas neviens nekur nekad, words like neko and nevienam go with the negative participle: neko neteikdams, not kaut ko neteikdams.
4. Not doing, so... A negative -ot phrase at the start of a sentence often gives a reason: Nezinot adresi, mēs ilgi meklējām māju (Not knowing the address, we searched for the house for a long time).
5. Without having done. For something not done before the main action, a negative past participle is also used: Viņš aizgāja, nevienam neko neteicis (He left without telling anyone anything).
Examples (6)
- Viņš aizgāja, neko neteikdams.
He left without saying anything.
Word by Word: He left, nothing not-saying.
- Nedomājot viņa piekrita.
She agreed without thinking.
Word by Word: Not-thinking she agreed.
- Viņa izgāja no mājas, neaizslēgdama durvis.
She left the house without locking the door.
Word by Word: She went-out from house, not-locking (fem.) door.
- Neatskatoties viņš devās prom.
He went away without looking back.
Word by Word: Not-looking-back he set-off away.
Atskatīties is reflexive, so the -ot form ends in -oties.
- Nezinot adresi, mēs ilgi meklējām māju.
Not knowing the address, we searched for the house for a long time.
Word by Word: Not-knowing address, we long searched house.
Here the negative -ot phrase gives the reason.
- Viņš aizgāja, nevienam neko neteicis.
He left without telling anyone anything.
Word by Word: He left, to-nobody nothing not-having-told.
The negative past participle neteicis means the telling never happened before he left.
Common Mistakes
Translating without + verb with bez.
Viņš aizgāja bez teikt neko.Viņš aizgāja, neko neteikdams.Bez goes with nouns, not verbs. For without doing, use a negative -dams or -ot form.
Writing ne as a separate word.
Viņa piekrita ne domājot.Viņa piekrita nedomājot.Ne- is a prefix here and is written together with the participle: nedomājot.
Forgetting to make -dams agree with a feminine subject.
Viņa aizgāja, neko neteikdams.Viņa aizgāja, neko neteikdama.The -dams form agrees with the subject. Viņa is feminine, so it is neteikdama.
How It Connects
Learn This First
Ne- + -dams or -ot means without doing.
Related Patterns
- -dams / -damaDoing Two Things at Once: -dams
Neteikdams is the -dams form with ne- added.
Level 5 - Adverbial Participle -ot / -otiesWhile or When: -ot
Nedomājot is the -ot form with ne- added.
Level 5 - nekas / neviens / nekur / nekadNobody, Nothing and Never
Neko and nevienam stay negative next to a negative participle.
Level 2 - bez + GenitiveWithout: Bez
Bez means without with nouns, but not with verbs.
Level 2
Words in This Pattern
Practice ne- + -dams or -ot in Bubblegum
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