áno / nie

Yes and No

Level 1

Áno = yes, nie = no. Áno, rozumiem. Nie, ďakujem.

How It Works

Answering questions. Slovak often repeats the verb after áno or nie, much like English "Yes, I am" or "No, I don't":

  • Si hladný? – Áno, som. (Are you hungry? – Yes, I am.)
  • Máte čas? – Nie, nemám. (Do you have time? – No, I don't.)

See zisťovacia otázka for how yes-no questions are formed.

Nie before a word. Nie can negate just one word or phrase: nie dnes (not today), nie ja (not me), nie veľa (not much). For the difference between negating a word and a whole sentence, see vetný a členský zápor.

Negating a verb. Do not put nie in front of an ordinary verb. Write ne- on the verb itself: nerozumiem, nemám (see zápor slovies ne-). The present of byť is the exception: nie som, nie je (see nie som / nie je).

In casual speech you will often hear hej for yes. You will also hear no, which in Slovak means "yes" or "well", not English "no".

Examples (6)

  1. Áno, rozumiem.

    Yes, I understand.

  2. Nie, ďakujem.

    No, thank you.

    A polite way to decline an offer.

  3. – Si hladný? – Áno, som.

    – Are you hungry? – Yes, I am.

    The answer repeats the verb, like English "Yes, I am".

  4. – Máte čas? – Nie, nemám.

    – Do you have time? – No, I don't.

    Nie answers the question, and ne- negates the verb.

  5. Nie dnes, ale zajtra.

    Not today, but tomorrow.

    Here nie negates only the word dnes.

  6. – Hovoríš po slovensky? – Hej, trochu.

    – Do you speak Slovak? – Yeah, a little.

    Hej is a casual yes.

Common Mistakes

  • Putting nie before an ordinary verb, as in English "I do not understand".

    Ja nie rozumiem.
    Nerozumiem.

    Ordinary verbs are negated with ne- written onto the verb. Only the present of byť uses a separate nie.

  • Writing nie separately before mať.

    Nie mám čas.
    Nemám čas.

    Mať is an ordinary verb, so the negative is nemám, written as one word.

How It Connects

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

áno / nieLevel 1Yes and No

Words in This Pattern

ne-