The Negative Form (PC) (Leaving Cert French): Revision Notes

The Negative Form (PC)

French negatives are used to turn a positive statement into a negative one.

It's like saying "not" in English, but in French, you typically use two parts around the verb.

French	English
Ne...pas	not
Ne...point	not at all
Ne...nullement	not at all
Ne...plus	no more / no longer
Ne...guère	scarcely / hardly
Ne...jamais	never
Ne...rien	nothing
Ne...personne	no-one / nobody
Ne...que	only
Ne...nul(le)	no / none / not any
Ne...nulle part	nowhere / not anywhere
Ne...ni...ni	neither...nor
Je ne mange ni viande ni poisson	I eat neither meat nor fish

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Let's recap the formation of negatives in the present tense.

1. Ne... Pas (Not)

• Je cours à l'école. (I run to school.)
• Je ne cours pas à l'école. (I do not run to school.)
• The word ne is placed before the verb, and pas is placed after the verb.

2. Ne... Jamais (Never)

• Je cours à l'école. (I run to school.)
• Je ne cours jamais à l'école. (I never run to school.)
• The word ne is placed before the verb, and jamais is placed after the verb.

3. Ne... Plus (No More)

• Elle boit du thé. (She drinks tea.)
• Elle ne boit plus de thé. (She no longer drinks tea.)
• The word ne is placed before the verb, and plus is placed after the verb.

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Negatives in the Passé Composé

When using negatives in the past tense (Passé Composé), the rules are the same but with an additional component - the past participle:

• Elle a vu le chien. (She has seen the dog.)
• Elle n'a pas vu le chien. (She has not seen the dog.)
• Ne is placed before the auxiliary (helping) verb, pas after the auxiliary verb, and the past participle is last.

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Exceptions:

There are three main exceptions where the negative part follows the past participle:

1. Ne... Personne (No one)

• Elles ont vu. (They have seen.)
• Elles _n'_ont vu personne__. (They have seen no one.)

2. Ne... Que (Only)

• Elle a vu le garçon. (She has seen the boy.)
• Elle n__'a vu que le garçon. (She has only seen the boy.)

3. Ne... Ni... Ni (Neither... Nor)

• Elle a mangé le pain et le beurre. (She has eaten the bread and the butter.)
• Elle _n'_a mangé ni pain ni beurre. (She has eaten neither bread nor butter.)

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Negatives with Reflexive Verbs in the Passé Composé

When forming the negative with reflexive verbs in the passé composé, the structure is similar to other negatives, but the reflexive pronoun adds an extra element:

1. Ne... Pas (Not)

• Je me suis lavé(e). (I washed myself.)
• Je ne me suis pas lavé(e). (I did not wash myself.)
• Ne is placed before the reflexive pronoun, and pas is placed after the auxiliary verb (être), with the past participle following.

2. Ne... Jamais (Never)

• Il s'est réveillé tôt. (He woke up early.)
• Il ne s'est jamais réveillé tôt. (He never woke up early.)
• Ne is placed before the reflexive pronoun, and jamais is placed after the auxiliary verb (être).

3. Ne... Plus (No More)

• Elle s'est amusée au parc. (She had fun at the park.)
• Elle ne s'est plus amusée au parc. (She no longer had fun at the park.)
• Ne is placed before the reflexive pronoun, and plus is placed after the auxiliary verb (être).

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