A Write a list of as many French negative expressions as you can.

Il y a ni .... ni .... There is neither .... nor ....

Remember, most negative expressions in French
Il n'y a pas There isn't are in two parts.

N'est plus No longer

Je ne .... jamais I never .....(verb)

N'y a pas un seul There is not a single

B Look at this sentence in English and its French translation.

Villelongue is no longer the perfect town because there is not a single open café.

The French negative The French for ‘perfect’ agrees with Aucun agrees with the noun.
expression for ‘no longer’ ‘town’, which is feminine. Does it go
goes around the verb. before or after the noun?

Translation: Villelongue n’est plus la ville parfaite car il n’y a aucun café ouvert.

C Look at this sentence and check what you need to look out for when translating it into
French.

There is only one baker’s and there is neither a butcher’s nor a chemist’s.

‘Only’ can be Use seul to add The French for this is in three parts: ne goes
translated with a emphasis, but make sure before the verb, while ni goes before each noun.
negative expression. it agrees with ‘baker’s’. There is no need for the French for ‘a’.

Translation: Il n’y a qu’une seule boulangerie et il n’y a ni boucherie ni pharmacie.

D Complete both the English and French
Each sentence includes a negative expression.
sentences.
Can you identify them all?

1 There is neither a field nor a river. Il n'y a ni champ ni fleuve.

2 In the evening, you hear no-one. Dans la soirée, on n’entend personne.

3 There are not enough trees. Ce ne sont pas assez d’arbres.

4 I never go to the swimming pool. Je ne vais jamais a la piscine.

5 There is not a single pedestrian zone. Il n'y a pas un seul zone piétonne.

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E Translate the text below into French.

I live in a remote village. There’s neither a cinema nor Not sure how to say ‘remote’ in French? It’s a
a café. It’s not fair! The young people never go out near-cognate of an English word with a similar
and you see nobody in the evening! But it’s clean and meaning.
there’s not any noise at night.

J'habite dans une éloigné village. Il n'y a ni cinéma ni café. Ce n'est pas juste! Les gens jeunes ne sortent
jamais et on ne voit pas personne le soir! Mais c'est nettoyer et il n'y a pas de bruit la nuit.

Try to spot if you need one of the many French negative expressions
by looking out for key words like ‘no longer’, ‘never’ and ‘neither’.

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