нико / ништа / нигде + Negated Verb

Nobody Nothing and Nowhere

Level 2Sounds Like niko; ništa; nigde + negaciǰa

In Serbian, negative words like нико (nobody), ништа (nothing), and нигде (nowhere) never stand alone with an affirmative verb. They require double negation (negative concord): the verb must also carry a negative particle like не, нисам, or немам.

How It Works

In Serbian syntax, negative pronouns and adverbs belong to the ни- series. Using them requires adhering to two fundamental rules:

1. Obligatory Negative Concord:
Whenever a negative pronoun or adverb is present, the governing predicate (the verb in the same clause) must be negated with не + глагол, negative imperatives like немој, or fused negative forms like нисам, нећу, and немам.
• Нико не спава. = Nobody is sleeping.
• Ништа нисам видео. = I didn't see anything.
• Нигде нема воде. = There is no water anywhere.
• Немој никоме рећи! = Don't tell anyone!

Notice that in complex sentences, only the verb in the same clause takes the negation: Знам да нико не спава. ('I know that nobody is sleeping' — знам is positive, while не спава is negated).

Multiple negative words can stack together in the same clause, and the verb still requires negation:
• Нико никада нигде ништа не говори. = Nobody ever says anything anywhere.

2. Preposition Splitting (Tmesis):
When a negative pronoun is used with a preposition, the prefix ни- splits from the case form, and the preposition is inserted right in the middle (see ни са ким; ни о чему):
• ни са ким (NOT са никим) = with nobody
• ни о чему (NOT о ничему) = about nothing

Distinction with other series:
Do not confuse the ни- series with the indefinite неко; нешто; негде ('someone, something, somewhere') series. Saying Не видим нешто means 'I don't quite see [it]' rather than 'I see nothing'. For 'I see nothing', you must say Не видим ништа.

Also be careful with English 'any-'. When translating negative English sentences like 'I don't see anything', Serbian always uses the ни- series (Не видим ништа), whereas in non-negative questions or conditions ('Do you see anything?'), Serbian uses the и- series (Видиш ли ишта?).

Examples (5)

  1. Нико не зна тачан одговор.

    Nobody knows the correct answer.

    Word by Word: Nobody not knows correct answer.

    The negative subject 'нико' requires the verbal negation 'не' before 'зна'.

  2. Ништа нисмо купили у продавници.

    We didn't buy anything at the store.

    Word by Word: Nothing not-are bought in store.

    'Ништа' acts as the direct object and requires the negated auxiliary 'нисмо'.

  3. Јуче нигде нисам могао да те нађем.

    Yesterday I couldn't find you anywhere.

    Word by Word: Yesterday nowhere not-was could that you I-find.

    The negative spatial adverb 'нигде' combines with the past negative auxiliary 'нисам'.

  4. Он ништа не говори о томе.

    He says nothing about that.

    Word by Word: He nothing not speaks about that.

    Direct negation pattern with 'ништа' and present tense 'не говори'.

  5. Нико овде нема времена.

    Nobody here has time.

    Word by Word: Nobody here not-has time.

    'Нико' pairs with the fused negative verb 'немам' (here 3rd person singular 'нема').

Common Mistakes

  • Omitting the verbal negation 'не' under the influence of English grammar.

    Нико зна одговор.
    Нико не зна одговор.

    In English, 'Nobody knows' takes an affirmative verb. In Serbian, negative concord is mandatory; an n-word without verbal negation is ungrammatical.

  • Placing prepositions before the whole negative pronoun instead of splitting it.

    Не причам са никим.
    Не причам ни са ким.

    In standard Serbian, prepositions must split negative pronouns: ни + preposition + case form (ни са ким, ни о чему).

  • Using the 'не-' series when intending a complete negative object.

    Не видим нешто.
    Не видим ништа.

    'Не видим нешто' means 'There is something I don't see' or 'I don't quite see'. To state 'I don't see anything / I see nothing', use 'ништа'.

How It Connects

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нико / ништа / нигде + Negated VerbLevel 2Nobody Nothing and Nowhere

Learn This First

To use negative concord correctly with 'нико', 'ништа', and 'нигде', learners must already know standard verbal negation ('не' + verb) since Serbian sentences strictly require both. Familiarity with the question words and indefinite pronouns helps learners recognise how these negative pronoun stems are formed and used.

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Words in This Pattern

никоништанигде