La négation at A1 — ne … pas
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Say « no » to anything: the two little words that negate every French sentence.
The sandwich rule
French negation is a sandwich: « ne » and « pas » wrap around the verb — « je ne parle pas ». That’s it. Whatever the verb, the bread stays the same.
Two details a teacher insists on from day one: before a vowel « ne » becomes « n’ » (« je n’aime pas »), and in casual speech the French often drop the ne entirely — « je sais pas ». Learn the full form first; recognise the short one.
💡 Devant une voyelle, « ne » devient « n’ » : je n’aime pas.
🔊 Example sentences
💡 Your A1 goal
At A1 your goal is recognition and first use: understand the pattern when you hear it, and produce the two or three simplest forms without thinking. Accuracy over ambition — short and correct beats long and broken.
Comfortable? Level up to La Negation at A2.
✍️ Practice
Je ___ parle ___ espagnol. (the sandwich)
Show answer
ne … pas
Je ___ aime pas le thé. (before a vowel)
Show answer
n’
Ce n’est ___ vrai. (finish it)
Show answer
pas
🎮 Practise
🧩 Sentence builder rebuild the negation