Grammar

Ne...pas: the basic French negative.

To say not in French, place ne before the verb and pas after it. The pattern is simple once you see it often.

The core pattern

• Je parle. I speak.
• Je ne parle pas. I do not speak.
• Il comprend. He understands.
• Il ne comprend pas. He does not understand.

Before a vowel: n'

Before a vowel sound, ne becomes n': Je n'aime pas, I do not like. Elle n'habite pas ici, she does not live here.

Spoken French often drops ne

In everyday conversation, people often say je sais pas instead of je ne sais pas. This is very common in speech, but the full form is still important for writing and careful speech.

Useful negatives

• Je ne sais pas. I don't know.
• Ce n'est pas grave. It is not serious.
• Je ne peux pas. I can't.

Learn the full structure first. Then, when you hear the shorter spoken version, it will feel familiar instead of confusing.