12.

9 Some Any No
Indefinite pronouns.

[00:00:01] Somebody, someone, something, somewhere.

[00:00:04] These are indefinite pronouns. They all have some in front of them. And as you
learned in the last lecture, that means they obey the same grammatical rules. And so other
indefinite pronouns: anyone, anybody, anywhere, anything are also indefinite pronouns and
follow the same rules as any.

[00:00:21] As well in this lecture, you're going to learn about nowhere, no one and nobody. As
well as how to use no.

[00:00:28] A cultural note.

[00:00:29] In spoken English, at least in the United States. We obey most grammatical rules with
some and any. But, with somebody something someplace somewhere, we often don't. We use
these some words in positive sentences and in questions and negative sentences instead of
using their proper any form. The negative any words aren't as common in spoken English. This is
how things are in the US although we do use them and maybe to add emphasis. And like I said,
this is not for when we use some and any by themselves. It's only for the words discussed in this
lecture. So these changes are acceptable in spoken English. But if you are taking a test, make
sure to follow the rules!

[00:01:12] Someone and somebody .

[00:01:14] These two words both mean a person. But whose identity is unknown, we don't know
who it is. Somebody is generally seen as being less formal than someone. So it's more common
in spoken English. While someone is a bit more common in written English, but really they're
used almost exactly the same in spoken English. So use whichever one you like more.

[00:01:36] She's on the phone with someone right now, but with who?

[00:01:39] I don't know with somebody!

[00:01:41] Somebody crashed into my car and drove away!

[00:01:43] Someone once said that money can't buy happiness.

[00:01:47] Anybody/anyone.

[00:01:49] Someone and somebody are used in positive sentences, but we use anybody and
anyone in negative sentences and in questions.

[00:01:57] Is she talking to anyone right now?

[00:01:59] No, she's not talking to anyone.

[00:02:01] Did anyone come to your party last night?

[00:02:03] No, no one!

[00:02:05] They didn't try to call anyone. Did they?

[00:02:07] Nope? They didn't.

[00:02:08] Somewhere/anywhere.

[00:02:10] Somewhere refers to a non-specified, not specific location. It's a place that exists, but
we don't know where it is exactly. It's unknown. And in most questions and negative sentences,
this will turn into anywhere. And just like with any, we can also make an exception and use it
when we want to show that we just don't really care about the place.

[00:02:31] They live somewhere in the countryside.

[00:02:33] Well, we're not going anywhere until we get there exact address! Actually. You know
what, I don't care. We can go anywhere.

[00:02:39] Let's go somewhere today to have some fun.

[00:02:41] We're going nowhere until you finish your homework!

[00:02:44] Not.

[00:02:44] From our previous examples, you might have noticed that we can't use not before
our any words when they are the subject. Instead we use no one, nobody, nothing and
nowhere. We also don't put negative words like no, not, never or other negatives in front of
these no words.

[00:03:03] That's because to be grammatically correct in English, we never use a double

negative. Though you will hear it in spoken English, especially to add emphasis. Here are two
examples of the double negative that are grammatically incorrect, but still used by many native
speakers in spoken English. But just so you know ,while this is common for native speakers in
spoken English, it should only be used in very informal situations.

[00:03:30] Not nobody going to work on Christmas!

[00:03:33] On a test and in more formal situations, you should say nobody is going to work on
Christmas. In informal spoken English, not nobody adds more stress, more emphasis to the fact
that nobody wants to work on Christmas.

[00:03:46] There isn't nothing we can do about it!

[00:03:48] In spoken English, then nothing has a lot of emphasis, really highlights the point that
we can't do something. It's wrong though if you're taking a test or talking to your boss. And you
want to remember to say there isn't anything we can do about it.

[00:04:02] Nobody, no one, nothing and nowhere.

[00:04:05] I just told you that instead of putting not in front of our any words. We use nobody,
no one, nothing, nowhere and no place. Besides being a grammar rule to follow, these words
tend to sound stronger. And add more emphasis.

[00:04:19] Is anybody coming?

[00:04:20] No, no one is coming, or, no, I don't think anyone is coming.

[00:04:24] No one here is stronger. It also sounds more certain than just using anyone.

[00:04:29] Hey, do you want to do something?

[00:04:31] No, there's nothing to do, or, I can't think of anything to do.

[00:04:34] So there's nothing to do, which is more direct and immediately expresses your
opinion and gets to the point.

[00:04:40] Using adjectives with indefinite pronouns.

[00:04:43] If you want to use an adjective with the indefinite pronouns we just discussed in this
lecture, we put the adjective after the pronoun. And if you want to express an action, we put 'to'
after the pronoun or pronoun adjective combination, followed by the main verb in the infinitive.
Here are a few examples to help you understand.

[00:05:02] There's nothing good in the fridge, or, there's nothing good TO eat in the fridge.

[00:05:07] Do you have anything fun at your house, or, do you have anything fun TO play at your
house?

[00:05:13] Is there someone waiting at the door, or, is there someone waiting TO deliver a
package at the door?

[00:05:19] Okay, so we covered a lot of indefinite pronoun rules, positive statements, questions
and different types of negative constructions.

[00:05:26] So please do the homework! Because I give some important examples about how
different the grammar rules can be compared to the rules of spoken English.