نمی‌ + Present Stem

Negating the Ordinary Present

Level 2

می‌خوانم becomes نمی‌خوانم: I do not read, or I am not reading. The person ending stays the same.

How It Works

Keep the verb’s person. می‌خوانم and نمی‌خوانم both describe a first-singular subject. The negative prefix changes whether the action occurs, not who acts.

هر روز قهوه نمی‌نوشم means “I do not drink coffee every day.” The placement and focus of time words can affect what is denied, so use clear context rather than assigning one English scope to every sentence. A simpler من قهوه نمی‌نوشم denies the coffee-drinking habit.

For a current situation, الان کار نمی‌کنم means “I am not working now.” For a stated plan, فردا نمی‌روم means “I am not going tomorrow.” Time reference still comes from the verb and its context.

This entry applies to ordinary می‌ verbs. داشتن in the possessive present uses ندارم, and the present copula uses نیستم or نیست. Do not build these by mechanically adding نمی‌.

Learn the written-standard and everyday stem shapes separately: formal نمی‌روم corresponds to common everyday نمی‌رم.

Examples (4)

  1. من قهوه نمی‌نوشم.

    I do not drink coffee.

    The negative ordinary present retains first-singular ـم.

  2. الان کار نمی‌کنم.

    I am not working now.

    Negation precedes the light verb in this compound.

  3. فردا نمی‌روم.

    I am not going tomorrow.

    The time phrase gives future reference.

  4. نمی‌رم.

    I am not going.

    Common everyday counterpart of written نمی‌روم.

How It Connects

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

نمی‌ + Present StemLevel 2Negating the Ordinary Present

Learn This First

Use نمی‌ before an ordinary present stem and preserve the subject ending; common possession and copula negatives have their own forms.

Learn Next

Patterns that build on this one.