Serbian negation is built on one small word, не, placed in front of the verb: не знам, не видим, не разумем. There is no auxiliary do, no doesn't, no didn't — the particle simply stands where English puts nothing at all.
Three verbs refuse to take не in front and fuse with it instead. Јесам (I am) becomes нисам; хоћу (I will) becomes нећу; имам (I have) becomes немам. These three are written as single words, they are the only such fusions in the language, and they are among the commonest words in it.
The fourth thing to learn is that Serbian requires negative concord. Where English says nobody said anything to anyone, using one negative and then switching to any, Serbian negates every element in the sentence: нико никоме ништа није рекао — four negatives, all obligatory. Leaving out the не on the verb is not an emphatic variant; it is ungrammatical.
Key Takeaways
- не stands before the verb, written separately: не знам - Three fusions, written solid: нисам (not не јесам), нећу, немам - није negates is; нема negates there is, and takes the genitive: нема хлеба - Negative concord is compulsory: нико ништа не зна, never *нико зна ништа - Negative words all begin ни-: нико, ништа, никад, нигде, никако, ниједан, нимало - With a preposition they split: ни са ким, ни о чему, ни у шта - Negative imperative uses немој / немојте plus infinitive: немој ићи
✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾
20.1a Не not знам I-know 20.1b Ne (neh) not znam (znahm) I-know
20.2a Ово this није is-not моја my-FEM торба bag 20.2b Ovo (O-vo) this nije (NEE-ye) is-not moja (MO-ya) my-FEM torba (TOR-ba) bag
20.3a Немам I-have-not времена time-GEN 20.3b Nemam (NE-mam) I-have-not vremena (VRE-me-na) time-GEN
20.4a Нећу I-will-not да to идем I-go данас today 20.4b Neću (NE-choo) I-will-not da (dah) to idem (EE-dem) I-go danas (DA-nas) today
20.5a У in кући house-LOC нема there-is-not никога nobody-GEN 20.5b U (oo) in kući (KOO-chee) house-LOC nema (NE-ma) there-is-not nikoga (NEE-ko-ga) nobody-GEN
20.6a Нико nobody не not зна knows где where је is он he 20.6b Niko (NEE-ko) nobody ne (neh) not zna (znah) knows gde (gdeh) where je (yeh) is on (on) he
20.7a Никад never нисам I-am-not био been-MASC у in Паризу Paris-LOC 20.7b Nikad (NEE-kad) never nisam (NEE-sam) I-am-not bio (BEE-o) been-MASC u (oo) in Parizu (PA-ree-zoo) Paris-LOC
20.8a Он he не not пије drinks кафу coffee-ACC увече in-the-evening 20.8b On (on) he ne (neh) not pije (PEE-ye) drinks kafu (KA-foo) coffee-ACC uveče (OO-ve-che) in-the-evening
20.9a Ништа nothing ми me-DAT ниси you-are-not рекао said-MASC 20.9b Ništa (NEESH-ta) nothing mi (mee) me-DAT nisi (NEE-see) you-are-not rekao (RE-ka-o) said-MASC
20.10a Ни not са with ким whom-INST не not разговара speaks 20.10b Ni (nee) not sa (sah) with kim (keem) whom-INST ne (neh) not razgovara (raz-GO-va-ra) speaks
20.11a Немој don't да to бринеш you-worry није it-is-not страшно terrible 20.11b Nemoj (NE-moy) don't da (dah) to brineš (BREE-nesh) you-worry nije (NEE-ye) it-is-not strašno (STRASH-no) terrible
20.12a Није is-not лако easy живети to-live сам alone 20.12b Nije (NEE-ye) is-not lako (LA-ko) easy živeti (ZHEE-ve-tee) to-live sam (sahm) alone
20.13a Зар surely-not ниси you-are-not знао known-MASC да that се REFL сели he-moves 20.13b Zar (zahr) surely-not nisi (NEE-see) you-are-not znao (ZNA-o) known-MASC da (dah) that se (seh) REFL seli (SE-lee) he-moves
20.14a Ниједан not-one од of њих them-GEN није is-not дошао come-MASC 20.14b Nijedan (nee-YE-dan) not-one od (od) of njih (nyeeh) them-GEN nije (NEE-ye) is-not došao (DO-shao) come-MASC
20.15a Никоме nobody-DAT ништа nothing нисам I-am-not обећао promised-MASC 20.15b Nikome (NEE-ko-me) nobody-DAT ništa (NEESH-ta) nothing nisam (NEE-sam) I-am-not obećao (o-BE-cha-o) promised-MASC
✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾
20.1 Не знам. "I don't know."
20.2 Ово није моја торба. "This isn't my bag."
20.3 Немам времена. "I haven't got time."
20.4 Нећу да идем данас. "I don't want to go today."
20.5 У кући нема никога. "There's nobody in the house."
20.6 Нико не зна где је он. "Nobody knows where he is."
20.7 Никад нисам био у Паризу. "I've never been to Paris."
20.8 Он не пије кафу увече. "He doesn't drink coffee in the evening."
20.9 Ништа ми ниси рекао. "You didn't tell me anything."
20.10 Ни са ким не разговара. "He isn't speaking to anyone."
20.11 Немој да бринеш, није страшно. "Don't worry, it's not serious."
20.12 Није лако живети сам. "It isn't easy living alone."
20.13 Зар ниси знао да се сели? "Didn't you know he was moving?"
20.14 Ниједан од њих није дошао. "Not one of them came."
20.15 Никоме ништа нисам обећао. "I promised nothing to anyone."
✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾
20.1 Не знам.
20.2 Ово није моја торба.
20.3 Немам времена.
20.4 Нећу да идем данас.
20.5 У кући нема никога.
20.6 Нико не зна где је он.
20.7 Никад нисам био у Паризу.
20.8 Он не пије кафу увече.
20.9 Ништа ми ниси рекао.
20.10 Ни са ким не разговара.
20.11 Немој да бринеш, није страшно.
20.12 Није лако живети сам.
20.13 Зар ниси знао да се сели?
20.14 Ниједан од њих није дошао.
20.15 Никоме ништа нисам обећао.
✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾
These are the rules for не.
1. The particle. Не stands immediately before the finite verb and is written as a separate word: не знам, не видим, не разумем, не бих. It is a proclitic, carrying no stress of its own — except that with many common verbs the stress retracts onto it, so that не becomes the loud syllable: НЕ знам, НЕ видим, НЕ дам. This is the same retraction met with на in Lesson 18.
Nothing may come between не and its verb except a clitic pronoun: не знам га, but не га знам is impossible; the clitic follows.
2. The three fusions. Only three verbs join with не into a single written word:
јесам → нисам, ниси, није, нисмо, нисте, нису хоћу → нећу, нећеш, неће, нећемо, нећете, неће имам → немам, немаш, нема, немамо, немате, немају
Every other verb keeps the particle separate. Since нисам and нећу also serve as auxiliaries — for the perfect and the future respectively — these forms carry an enormous share of all Serbian negation: нисам дошао (I didn't come), нећу доћи (I won't come).
3. Није against нема. These negate two different things and are not interchangeable.
није is the negative of is, and negates a predicate: Он није овде. He is not here. нема is the negative of there is, and negates existence: Овде нема никога. There is nobody here.
Нема in this existential use is frozen in the third singular for all persons and numbers, and the thing that does not exist stands in the genitive: нема хлеба, нема воде, нема проблема, нема их. Its past is није било and its future неће бити, both equally frozen: није било места (there was no room), неће бити времена.
4. The genitive of negation. Beyond existential нема, an object of a negated verb may go into the genitive: немам новца, не пијем кафе. Modern Serbian increasingly uses the plain accusative here — немам новац, не пијем кафу — and both are correct. The genitive survives obligatorily with нема and with a handful of set phrases: нема шансе, немам појма, нема везе.
5. Negative concord. Every indefinite in the scope of a negation becomes a ни- word, and the verb still takes не:
Нико не долази. Nobody is coming. Ништа не разумем. I understand nothing. Нико никад ништа није рекао. Nobody ever said anything.
English switches to any after the first negative; Serbian does not have that option. A sentence like *нико зна ништа is not merely odd, it is impossible.
The series: нико (nobody), ништа (nothing), никад(а) (never), нигде (nowhere), никако (in no way), ниједан (not one), нимало (not at all), никакав (no kind of), ничији (nobody's).
6. Splitting the preposition. When a ни- pronoun takes a preposition, the preposition goes inside the word, between ни and the pronoun. This is one of the most distinctive rules in the language:
ни са ким (with nobody), not *с ником ни о чему (about nothing) ни у шта (into nothing) ни за кога (for nobody) ни од кога (from nobody)
The rule is compulsory with ни- words, and it is the single quickest test of whether a learner has internalised Serbian negation or is translating from English.
7. Ни and нити. Ни is the negative counterpart of и: ни ја (nor I), ни хлеба ни воде (neither bread nor water). Нити … нити is the fuller, more literary correlative. Ни also functions as an emphatic not even: није ни погледао (he didn't even look).
8. The negative imperative. Serbian does not negate the plain imperative in ordinary speech. Instead it uses немој (singular) or немојте (plural) plus either the infinitive or да plus the present:
Немој ићи. / Немој да идеш. Don't go. Немојте се секирати. Don't worry (plural or polite).
9. Negative questions. Зар не? and је л' да? are the tag questions. A question opening with зар plus a negative expresses surprise: Зар ниси знао? — You mean you didn't know? Answering a negative question, Serbian да confirms the sentence as stated, so the English yes/no mapping is unreliable; speakers usually repeat the verb instead: Јесам or Нисам.
Common Mistakes
Using one negative on the English pattern: *нико је рекао нешто. Say нико није ништа рекао.
Writing the fusions apart: не сам, не ћу, *не мам. Say нисам, нећу, немам.
Using није for existence: *није никога у кући. Say нема никога у кући.
Putting the accusative after нема: *нема хлеб. Say нема хлеба.
Keeping the preposition in front: са ником, о ничему. Say ни са ким, ни о чему.
Negating the imperative directly: *не иди is possible but abrupt and largely literary; ordinary Serbian says немој ићи.
✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾
Нема is one of the most heavily used words in everyday Serbian, and most of its work is idiomatic. Нема проблема (no problem), нема везе (never mind, it doesn't matter), нема шансе (no chance), нема на чему (you're welcome, literally there is nothing on which — the standard reply to хвала), нема појма (he hasn't a clue), нема бољег (there's none better). A visitor who learns only нема and its half-dozen phrases will get through a great deal of conversation.
Не да ми се — literally it is not given to me — is the ordinary way of saying I can't be bothered, and it is impersonal: no agent, no fault. Its cousins не иде ми се, не пије ми се, не ради ми се all mean the mood is absent rather than the will. English has no comfortable equivalent, and the construction reveals something about how Serbian distributes responsibility for a state of mind.
Understatement through negation is a habit of the language. Није лоше (not bad) is genuine praise; није му лако (it isn't easy for him) can carry a great deal of sympathy; није да не разумем (it isn't that I don't understand) opens a polite disagreement. The double negative није немогуће is a way of conceding a point without endorsing it.
Ма не and ма јок are the conversational dismissals, јок being a Turkism (from yok) that survives as a colloquial nope alongside standard не. It is informal and warm rather than rude.
Finally, the folk poetry uses negation architecturally. The Slavic antithesis — met in Lesson 1 with Хасанагиница — opens with a question, denies both offered answers, and then supplies the real one: what is that whitening in the green forest? is it snow, or is it swans? it is neither snow nor swans. The passage below is built the same way, on a chain of negatives that gathers force by accumulation rather than by argument.
✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾
From Комади од различнијех косовскијех пјесама, fragments of the Kosovo cycle collected by Вук Стефановић Караџић and published in Српске народне пјесме, book two, 1845. These four lines, known as the Кнежева клетва (the Prince's Curse), are attributed in the poem to Prince Lazar on the eve of the battle of 1389. They are among the most widely known lines in the language, and every clause in them is negative.
F-A: Interlinear Construed Text
F.1a Ко who не not дође comes на to бој battle-ACC на to Косово Kosovo-ACC F.1b Ko (ko) who ne (neh) not dođe (DO-je) comes na (nah) to boj (boy) battle-ACC na (nah) to Kosovo (KO-so-vo) Kosovo-ACC
F.2a од from руке hand-GEN му to-him ништа nothing не not родило bear-fruit-NEUT F.2b od (od) from ruke (ROO-ke) hand-GEN mu (moo) to-him ništa (NEESH-ta) nothing ne (neh) not rodilo (RO-dee-lo) bear-fruit-NEUT
F.3a ни nor у in пољу field-LOC бјелица white-FEM пшеница wheat F.3b ni (nee) nor u (oo) in polju (PO-lyoo) field-LOC bjelica (BYE-lee-tsa) white-FEM pšenica (pshe-NEE-tsa) wheat
F.4a ни nor у in брду hill-LOC винова vine-FEM лозица little-vine F.4b ni (nee) nor u (oo) in brdu (BR-doo) hill-LOC vinova (VEE-no-va) vine-FEM lozica (LO-zee-tsa) little-vine
F-B: Natural Text with Translation
Ко не дође на бој на Косово, од руке му ништа не родило: ни у пољу бјелица пшеница, ни у брду винова лозица!
"Whoever does not come to the battle at Kosovo, may nothing bear fruit at his hand: neither the white wheat in the field, nor the vine on the hill."
F-C: Original Only
Ко не дође на бој на Косово, од руке му ништа не родило: ни у пољу бјелица пшеница, ни у брду винова лозица!
F-D: Grammar and Vocabulary Notes
Ко не дође (F.1) — the bare ко as a conditional relative, whoever, met in Lesson 13. Дође is the perfective present, which after ко carries future or generic reference: not does not come at a moment but fails to come at all.
Не родило (F.2) is the key form. It looks like a past participle, and it is one — this is the optative, an old construction in which the bare participle expresses a wish or, as here, a curse: may it not bear. It survives in modern Serbian almost exclusively in formulaic blessings and curses: живио! (long life!), не било ти суђено!. Note that the participle agrees in gender with its subject ништа, hence the neuter -ло.
Ништа не родило — negative concord, exactly as Section D §5 requires, in a text far older than the grammar book. The obligation is not a modern development.
Ни … ни (F.3–F.4) — the correlative of Section D §7, and the engine of the passage. Each ни adds a further thing that will fail, and because Serbian requires the negative on the verb too, the whole quatrain is held under a single negation stated once in line two.
Од руке му — the dative му of possession, commoner in the folk language than the possessive adjective: at his hand rather than at the hand of him. Од руке here means by his labour, an agricultural idiom.
Бјелица пшеница and винова лозица are the folk-epic double naming, in which a noun is paired with an adjective or a near-synonym for the sake of the decasyllable. Бјелица is Ijekavian; the Ekavian of this course would give белица. Лозица is the diminutive of лоза, and the diminutive here is affectionate rather than small.
The Kosovo cycle is the central body of Serbian oral epic and is taught in every Serbian school; these lines also carry a long and contested political afterlife, which is worth knowing about before quoting them. The grammar, which is what concerns us here, is simply the ordinary negation of the language used at full stretch.
✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾
Part A — Intralinear Construed Text
20.16a Тог that-GEN јутра morning-GEN ништа nothing није was-not било been-NEUT као as обично usually 20.16b Tog (tog) that-GEN jutra (YOO-tra) morning-GEN ništa (NEESH-ta) nothing nije (NEE-ye) was-not bilo (BEE-lo) been-NEUT kao (KA-o) as obično (O-beech-no) usually
20.17a Будилник alarm-clock није is-not зазвонио rung-MASC 20.17b Budilnik (BOO-deel-neek) alarm-clock nije (NEE-ye) is-not zazvonio (za-ZVO-nee-o) rung-MASC
20.18a У in фрижидеру fridge-LOC није was-not било been-NEUT ни nor млека milk-GEN ни nor хлеба bread-GEN 20.18b U (oo) in frižideru (free-ZHEE-de-roo) fridge-LOC nije (NEE-ye) was-not bilo (BEE-lo) been-NEUT ni (nee) nor mleka (MLE-ka) milk-GEN ni (nee) nor hleba (HLE-ba) bread-GEN
20.19a Нисам I-am-not стигао managed-MASC ни even да to попијем I-drink кафу coffee-ACC 20.19b Nisam (NEE-sam) I-am-not stigao (STEE-ga-o) managed-MASC ni (nee) even da (dah) to popijem (PO-pee-yem) I-drink kafu (KA-foo) coffee-ACC
20.20a Аутобус bus није is-not дошао come-MASC на on време time-ACC 20.20b Autobus (A-oo-to-boos) bus nije (NEE-ye) is-not došao (DO-shao) come-MASC na (nah) on vreme (VRE-me) time-ACC
20.21a Кад when је is коначно finally стигао arrived-MASC у in њему it-LOC није was-not било been-NEUT места room-GEN 20.21b Kad (kahd) when je (yeh) is konačno (KO-nach-no) finally stigao (STEE-ga-o) arrived-MASC u (oo) in njemu (NYE-moo) it-LOC nije (NEE-ye) was-not bilo (BEE-lo) been-NEUT mesta (MES-ta) room-GEN
20.22a Нико nobody није is-not хтео wanted-MASC да to се REFL помери he-move 20.22b Niko (NEE-ko) nobody nije (NEE-ye) is-not hteo (HTE-o) wanted-MASC da (dah) to se (seh) REFL pomeri (PO-me-ree) he-move
20.23a Телефон phone ми me-DAT се REFL угасио died-MASC па so нисам I-am-not могао could-MASC никога nobody-ACC да to позовем I-call 20.23b Telefon (TE-le-fon) phone mi (mee) me-DAT se (seh) REFL ugasio (oo-GA-see-o) died-MASC pa (pah) so nisam (NEE-sam) I-am-not mogao (MO-ga-o) could-MASC nikoga (NEE-ko-ga) nobody-ACC da (dah) to pozovem (PO-zo-vem) I-call
20.24a На at послу work-LOC ме me-ACC нико nobody ништа nothing није is-not питао asked-MASC што which је is било been-NEUT још still горе worse 20.24b Na (nah) at poslu (POS-loo) work-LOC me (meh) me-ACC niko (NEE-ko) nobody ništa (NEESH-ta) nothing nije (NEE-ye) is-not pitao (PEE-ta-o) asked-MASC što (shtoh) which je (yeh) is bilo (BEE-lo) been-NEUT još (yosh) still gore (GO-re) worse
20.25a Шеф boss није is-not ни even приметио noticed-MASC да that сам I-am закаснио been-late-MASC 20.25b Šef (shef) boss nije (NEE-ye) is-not ni (nee) even primetio (pree-ME-tee-o) noticed-MASC da (dah) that sam (sahm) I-am zakasnio (za-KAS-nee-o) been-late-MASC
20.26a До until подне noon нисам I-am-not урадио done-MASC готово almost ништа nothing 20.26b Do (doh) until podne (POD-ne) noon nisam (NEE-sam) I-am-not uradio (oo-RA-dee-o) done-MASC gotovo (GO-to-vo) almost ništa (NEESH-ta) nothing
20.27a Кући home се REFL нисам I-am-not враћао returned-MASC аутобусом bus-INST нисам I-am-not више any-more имао had-MASC живаца nerves-GEN 20.27b Kući (KOO-chee) home se (seh) REFL nisam (NEE-sam) I-am-not vraćao (VRA-cha-o) returned-MASC autobusom (a-oo-TO-boo-som) bus-INST nisam (NEE-sam) I-am-not više (VEE-she) any-more imao (EE-ma-o) had-MASC živaca (ZHEE-va-tsa) nerves-GEN
20.28a У in ствари truth-LOC ништа nothing се REFL страшно terrible није is-not догодило happened-NEUT 20.28b U (oo) in stvari (STVA-ree) truth-LOC ništa (NEESH-ta) nothing se (seh) REFL strašno (STRASH-no) terrible nije (NEE-ye) is-not dogodilo (do-GO-dee-lo) happened-NEUT
20.29a Али but постоје there-are дани days кад when ништа nothing не not иде goes и and против against тога that-GEN нема there-is-not лека cure-GEN 20.29b Ali (A-lee) but postoje (POS-to-ye) there-are dani (DA-nee) days kad (kahd) when ništa (NEESH-ta) nothing ne (neh) not ide (EE-de) goes i (ee) and protiv (PRO-teev) against toga (TO-ga) that-GEN nema (NE-ma) there-is-not leka (LE-ka) cure-GEN
20.30a Сутрадан next-day је is будилник alarm-clock зазвонио rung-MASC на on време time-ACC и and нисам I-am-not се REFL ни even сетио remembered-MASC претходног previous-GEN дана day-GEN 20.30b Sutradan (soo-TRA-dan) next-day je (yeh) is budilnik (BOO-deel-neek) alarm-clock zazvonio (za-ZVO-nee-o) rung-MASC na (nah) on vreme (VRE-me) time-ACC i (ee) and nisam (NEE-sam) I-am-not se (seh) REFL ni (nee) even setio (SE-tee-o) remembered-MASC prethodnog (PRET-hod-nog) previous-GEN dana (DA-na) day-GEN
✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾
Part B — Natural Sentences
20.16 Тог јутра ништа није било као обично. "That morning nothing was as it usually is."
20.17 Будилник није зазвонио. "The alarm clock didn't go off."
20.18 У фрижидеру није било ни млека ни хлеба. "There was neither milk nor bread in the fridge."
20.19 Нисам стигао ни да попијем кафу. "I didn't even manage to drink a coffee."
20.20 Аутобус није дошао на време. "The bus didn't come on time."
20.21 Кад је коначно стигао, у њему није било места. "When it finally arrived, there was no room in it."
20.22 Нико није хтео да се помери. "Nobody would move."
20.23 Телефон ми се угасио, па нисам могао никога да позовем. "My phone died, so I couldn't call anyone."
20.24 На послу ме нико ништа није питао, што је било још горе. "At work nobody asked me anything, which was worse still."
20.25 Шеф није ни приметио да сам закаснио. "The boss didn't even notice I was late."
20.26 До подне нисам урадио готово ништа. "By midday I had done almost nothing."
20.27 Кући се нисам враћао аутобусом — нисам више имао живаца. "I didn't take the bus home — I had no nerves left."
20.28 У ствари, ништа се страшно није догодило. "Nothing terrible had actually happened."
20.29 Али постоје дани кад ништа не иде, и против тога нема лека. "But there are days when nothing goes right, and there is no cure for that."
20.30 Сутрадан је будилник зазвонио на време, и нисам се ни сетио претходног дана. "The next day the alarm went off on time, and I didn't even think of the day before."
✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾
Part C — Target Language Only
20.16 Тог јутра ништа није било као обично.
20.17 Будилник није зазвонио.
20.18 У фрижидеру није било ни млека ни хлеба.
20.19 Нисам стигао ни да попијем кафу.
20.20 Аутобус није дошао на време.
20.21 Кад је коначно стигао, у њему није било места.
20.22 Нико није хтео да се помери.
20.23 Телефон ми се угасио, па нисам могао никога да позовем.
20.24 На послу ме нико ништа није питао, што је било још горе.
20.25 Шеф није ни приметио да сам закаснио.
20.26 До подне нисам урадио готово ништа.
20.27 Кући се нисам враћао аутобусом — нисам више имао живаца.
20.28 У ствари, ништа се страшно није догодило.
20.29 Али постоје дани кад ништа не иде, и против тога нема лека.
20.30 Сутрадан је будилник зазвонио на време, и нисам се ни сетио претходног дана.
✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾
Part D — Grammar Notes for the Story
Ништа није било (20.16) — the past of existential нема is није било, frozen in the neuter singular whatever the subject. It recurs in 20.18 and 20.21, each time with a genitive: ни млека ни хлеба, места. This is the one place where the genitive of negation is not optional.
Није зазвонио (20.17) — the ordinary perfect negated: нисам / ниси / није plus the participle. Зазвонити is perfective with the prefix за-, marking the onset of a sound; its imperfective звонити would describe a bell ringing on.
Ни млека ни хлеба (20.18) — ни … ни of Section D §7, and both nouns genitive after није било. English can drop to no milk or bread; Serbian repeats the ни.
Ни да попијем (20.19) — here ни is not a correlative but the emphatic not even, standing in front of the whole clause. The same ни appears in 20.25 (није ни приметио) and 20.30 (нисам се ни сетио). It is one of the most useful small words in conversational Serbian.
Никога да позовем (20.23) — concord again: the negated нисам могао forces никога rather than некога. Note the split of the verb complex, with the object standing before да — very common in speech, where да plus present replaces the infinitive.
Нико ништа није питао (20.24) — three negatives, and питати taking two accusatives at once (ме, ништа), a pattern shared with молити and учити.
Нисам имао живаца (20.27) — genitive after a negated имати, still the natural choice with abstract nouns. Живци (nerves) is plural in Serbian as in English, and немам живаца is the everyday phrase for having reached one's limit.
Ништа се страшно није догодило (20.28) — clitic placement. Се must stand in second position in its clause, which splits ништа страшно in two. Learners consistently write ништа страшно се није догодило, which is understood but marks the writer as foreign.
Нема лека (20.29) — existential нема with the genitive, in a fixed expression: томе нема лека, there is no cure for it. Против тога takes the genitive, as all its prepositions do.
Сетио се претходног дана (20.30) — сетити се governs the genitive, and the negated form keeps it. The story closes on ни in its not even sense, which is where it began: with something that failed to happen.
✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾
не (ne): neh. A short, pure e, closer to the vowel of pet than of pay, and never a diphthong. Unstressed in isolation, it frequently pulls the stress onto itself in fixed combinations — НЕ знам, НЕ дам, НЕ могу — while the verb goes flat.
нисам / ниси / није (nisam / nisi / nije): NEE-sam, NEE-see, NEE-ye. Stress on the first syllable throughout, and the и is a long, pure ee. Није is two syllables, NEE-ye, not one.
нећу (neću): NE-choo. The ћ is the soft affricate — the same sound as in свећа in Lesson 19, distinct from the harder ч of чај. English speakers almost always substitute ч here, which is audible but not fatal.
нема (nema): NE-ma. Both vowels open and short. Its past није било is NEE-ye BEE-lo, four syllables, usually run together in speech.
ништа (ništa): NEESH-ta. The шт cluster opens no vowel between the consonants; think of fresh tar with the gap closed.
никога / никоме (nikoga / nikome): NEE-ko-ga, NEE-ko-me. Stress stays on the initial syllable through the whole paradigm, as with овај in Lesson 19.
ни са ким (ni sa kim): nee-sa-KEEM. Three words, one rhythmic unit, and the stress falls at the end because ни and са are both proclitic. The whole phrase is shorter to say than to look at.
живаца (živaca): ZHEE-va-tsa. Ж as in measure, ц as ts. The nominative живци has the cluster вц with no vowel between; the genitive plural inserts the fugitive а.
✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾
---