Catalan has a family of words that can express an absent person, thing, member of a set, time, or place: ningú “nobody/anybody,” res “nothing/anything,” cap “no/any,” mai “never/ever,” and enlloc “nowhere/anywhere.” Their English translation changes with the polarity of the clause, but their Catalan form does not.
Their position determines how they interact with no in a negative assertion. After the verb, a negative word requires preverbal no: No he vist ningú. Before the verb, the negative word itself can establish negation: Ningú ha vingut. Standard Catalan also permits and often favors, especially in careful writing, the concord pattern Ningú no ha vingut. The two negative-looking elements express one semantic negation, not two cancellations.
Inventory and decision table
| Word | What it refers to | Postverbal negative pattern | Preverbal pattern |
|---|---|---|---|
| ningú | person | No veig ningú. | Ningú (no) em veu. |
| res | thing or proposition | No diu res. | Res (no) el convenç. |
| cap + noun | zero members of a set | No tinc cap dubte. | Cap resposta (no) és correcta. |
| mai | time or frequency | No hi vaig mai. | Mai (no) hi vaig. |
| enlloc | place | No ho trobo enlloc. | Enlloc (no) diu això. |
Parentheses in the last column mark a genuine standard option. In neutral speech, omission of no after a preverbal negative word is widespread: Ningú ho sap. Retaining it—Ningú no ho sap—is also correct and especially established in formal written Catalan. Do not interpret the latter as “nobody does not know.”
Ningú and res: people versus things
Ningú stands alone and refers to people; res stands alone and refers to things, actions, or information. Neither word directly modifies a noun.
No conec ningú en aquest barri, però els veïns semblen amables.
I don't know anyone in this neighborhood, but the neighbors seem friendly.
Ningú no m'ha avisat que la botiga tancava abans.
Nobody told me that the shop was closing early.
No entenc res del que diu aquest missatge.
I don't understand anything this message says.
Res no justifica que li parlis així.
Nothing justifies your speaking to her like that.
Unlike Spanish nadie, Catalan ningú does not take a general “personal a” before a direct object. Say No he vist ningú, not No he vist a ningú in the standard baseline. A preposition appears only when the verb or relation requires it: No he parlat amb ningú; No penso en ningú.
Cap: no member of a set
Cap normally precedes a count noun and is invariant for gender: cap amic, cap amiga. The noun is usually singular because the phrase selects not even one member of the relevant set. When the noun is understood, cap can stand alone.
No queda cap entrada per al concert de dissabte.
There are no tickets left for Saturday's concert.
Cap dels pressupostos no inclou el transport.
None of the estimates includes transport.
—Quina d'aquestes jaquetes et va bé? —No me'n va bé cap.
—Which of these jackets fits you? —None of them fits me.
English any can correspond to cap under negation, but it is not a word-for-word rule. Use cap for a countable member, res for a thing without an expressed noun, and gens de for zero quantity or degree. The gens and gaire guide develops that last distinction.
Mai and enlloc: time and place
Mai locates an event at no time; enlloc locates it in no place. Postverbal position gives the neutral patterns no...mai and no...enlloc. Preposing them adds focus or organizes the discourse.
Els diumenges no posem mai el despertador.
On Sundays we never set the alarm clock.
Mai no deixaria les claus sota l'estora.
I would never leave the keys under the doormat.
He buscat el rebut, però no el trobo enlloc.
I've looked for the receipt, but I can't find it anywhere.
Enlloc del contracte no s'especifica aquesta penalització.
Nowhere in the contract is this penalty specified. (formal)
The last sentence begins with an expanded, reordered place phrase and retains no, a particularly natural choice in formal prose. English uses subject–auxiliary inversion after nowhere; Catalan does not need an English-style auxiliary or inversion. Its structural signal is the negative word, optionally reinforced by standard negative concord.
Negative uses and polarity-sensitive uses
In questions and conditions, these words can mean anybody, anything, any, ever, or anywhere without making the clause a negative assertion. The context leaves the existence of the person, thing, time, or place open.
Has vist ningú esperant davant de l'oficina?
Have you seen anyone waiting outside the office?
Si necessites res, truca'm encara que sigui tard.
If you need anything, call me even if it's late.
Hi has anat mai a l'hivern?
Have you ever been there in winter?
Tens cap pregunta abans que continuem?
Do you have any questions before we continue?
Si el veus enlloc, digues-li que el busquem.
If you see him anywhere, tell him we're looking for him.
These are non-assertive environments: the speaker does not claim that somebody or something exists. Negative-series forms in a question can also suggest that the speaker considers a negative answer plausible: neutral Has vist algú? simply asks whether you saw someone, whereas Has vist ningú? readily conveys “Did you see anyone at all?” In a straightforward positive assertion, use algú, alguna cosa, algun, or algun lloc: He vist algú “I saw someone.” Mapping English any mechanically fails because English uses the same form across several functions that Catalan distinguishes through polarity.
Scope and minimal contrasts
Position can change what is foregrounded without changing the basic truth conditions.
No ha contestat ningú al correu.
Nobody has replied to the email. (neutral postverbal focus)
Ningú no ha contestat al correu.
Nobody has replied to the email. (the absent responders are foregrounded)
Now compare a real scope contrast:
No diu que no vindrà mai.
She isn't saying that she will never come.
Diu que no vindrà mai.
She says that she will never come.
In the first sentence, the initial no negates diu, while no...mai belongs inside the embedded clause. One clause's negation does not automatically spread into another. Ask which predicate each negative word belongs to.
A natural dialogue
—Ha trucat ningú mentre era fora? —No, no ha trucat ningú, i tampoc no ha arribat cap missatge. —Estrany; la Laia no passa mai tanta estona sense contestar.
—Did anyone call while I was out? —No, nobody called, and no message arrived either. —Strange; Laia never goes that long without replying.
The first ningú is polarity-sensitive in a question; the second participates in postverbal negative concord. Cap missatge counts messages, and mai denies the time/frequency of a habitual event.
Register and regional guidance
All five words belong to contemporary standard Catalan across the major regional standards. The amount of preverbal no retained with ningú, res, cap, mai, and enlloc varies by region, register, sentence rhythm, and speaker. Both Ningú ho sap and Ningú no ho sap are accepted; careful and formal prose often preserves no. Postverbal No ho sap ningú requires it in the standard language. This is Catalan negative concord, not an error imported from Spanish and not the logic of nonstandard English double negatives.
Short correction task
Correct the polarity or placement.
- He vist ningú al passadís. (positive assertion: somebody)
- Ha arribat cap paquet. (negative statement: no package)
- No vaig mai enlloc no.
He vist algú al passadís.
I saw someone in the corridor.
No ha arribat cap paquet.
No package has arrived.
No vaig mai enlloc sense avisar.
I never go anywhere without letting people know.
Common Mistakes
❌ Veig no ningú a la recepció.
Incorrect — a postverbal negative word needs preverbal no, not no placed beside the word.
✅ No veig ningú a la recepció; potser han anat a dinar.
I don't see anyone at reception; perhaps they've gone to lunch.
❌ No he vist a ningú a la sala d'espera.
Incorrect in the standard baseline — do not copy the Spanish personal-a rule before direct-object ningú.
✅ No he vist ningú a la sala d'espera.
I haven't seen anyone in the waiting room.
❌ No tinc cap de temps aquesta tarda.
Incorrect — cap selects a count noun directly; zero quantity with a mass noun uses gens de.
✅ No tinc gens de temps aquesta tarda.
I don't have any time at all this afternoon.
❌ Mai he anat algun lloc tan tranquil.
Incorrect polarity — within the never-context, use enlloc; a positive destination would need a different structure.
✅ No he anat mai enlloc tan tranquil com aquest poble.
I've never been anywhere as peaceful as this village.
Key Takeaways
- Use ningú for people, res for things, cap for zero members, mai for time, and enlloc for place.
- After the verb, these items require no: No ha vingut ningú.
- Before the verb, both Ningú ha vingut and concordant Ningú no ha vingut express one negation.
- In questions and conditions, the same words can mean anybody, anything, any, ever, and anywhere.
- Do not import English double-negative logic or Spanish direct-object a into Catalan.
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Start learning Catalan →Related Topics
- Basic Negation with NoA1 — How Catalan no negates finite and nonfinite predicates, combines with clitics, and answers questions without English-style auxiliary verbs.
- Gens and GaireA2 — How gens and gaire express zero or limited degree and quantity in negative, interrogative, and other non-assertive contexts.
- Tampoc and Negative AgreementA2 — How tampoc expresses neither and not either in replies, coordinated clauses, and focused negative additions.
- Ni and Ni... NiA2 — Coordinate negative alternatives and express ‘not even’ with Catalan ni, with clear rules for no, scope, agreement, and emphasis.
- Negation Scope and AmbiguityB2 — Identify what Catalan no negates around constituents, quantifiers, modals, subordinate clauses, and spoken focus, then disambiguate by paraphrasing.