Negative Compound Past

Level 3

Ai pas manjat: pas goes right after the auxiliary.

How It Works

PositiveNegative
Ai manjat.Ai pas manjat.
As trabalhat.As pas trabalhat.
Marta a telefonat.Marta a pas telefonat.
Sèm arribats.Sèm pas arribats.

The rule is the same for every verb: pas follows the first verb you meet, which is the auxiliary. It never goes after the participle.

With an object pronoun, the pronoun comes before the auxiliary and pas stays after it: T'ai pas vist ièr.

The small word n' is not a negation. It is the pronoun ne, meaning of it or of them. N'ai pas manjat means I did not eat any of it.

Examples (5)

  1. Ai pas manjat.

    I did not eat.

    Pas stands between ai and manjat.

  2. Soi pas anat a l'escòla.

    I did not go to school.

    Pas follows soi, the auxiliary.

  3. Marta a pas telefonat.

    Marta did not phone.

    Pas follows a.

  4. Avèm pas vist Joan.

    We did not see Joan.

    Pas comes before the participle vist.

  5. T'ai pas vist ièr.

    I did not see you yesterday.

    The pronoun t' comes first; pas follows the auxiliary.

Common Mistakes

  • Putting pas after the participle.

    Ai manjat pas.
    Ai pas manjat.

    Pas goes right after the auxiliary, before the participle.

  • Reading n' as the French negative ne.

    N'ai pas manjat.
    Ai pas manjat.

    N'ai pas manjat is correct Occitan, but n' is the pronoun ne here. It means I did not eat any of it. For plain I did not eat, write Ai pas manjat.

How It Connects

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

Negative Compound PastLevel 3

Learn This First

The negative compound past puts pas between the helper and the participle, so the compound past and negation with pas come first.

Words in This Pattern

pasaverèsser