نه ... نه and Negative Coordination | Farsi Grammar

Persian نه ... نه coordinates two or more rejected alternatives: “neither ... nor,” “not ... or,” or “neither does X nor does Y.” Its most important surprise is that the paired نه can itself supply clause negation. In the basic construction, the finite verb is therefore often morphologically affirmative: نه چای می‌خورم نه قهوه means “I drink neither tea nor coffee.” This differs both from English neither ... nor agreement and from Persian negative indefinites such as هیچ‌کس, which normally co-occur with a negative verb.

The general mechanics of omitting repeated material are developed on Coordination and Shared Constituents; here the focus is specifically on how paired نه creates negative scope.

What can نه ... نه coordinate?

Coordinated material	Pattern	Example core
noun phrases	نه X و نه Y + گزاره	نه مدیر و نه حسابدار خبر داشتند
objects	نه X را ... نه Y را	نه پیام را دیدم نه ایمیل را
adjectives or predicate phrases	نه X است نه Y	نه ارزان است نه بادوام
clauses	نه clause، نه clause	نه تماس گرفت، نه پیام داد

The repeated particle marks parallel constituents as members of one negative set. Repeat نه before every coordinated member whose exclusion matters.

این لپ‌تاپ نه سبک است نه ارزان.

in laptop na sabok ast na arzân.

This laptop is neither light nor inexpensive. (neutral standard; predicate adjectives)

برای سفر نه قطار پیدا کردیم نه اتوبوس.

barâ-ye safar na qatâr peydâ kardim na otobus.

For the trip, we found neither a train nor a bus. (neutral conversation; coordinated objects)

Although است and کردیم look affirmative, the clauses are semantically negative because the paired نه has scope over the contrasted constituents.

One shared predicate

When two subjects share one predicate, careful written Persian often uses نه X و نه Y + affirmative predicate. A human compound subject normally favors plural agreement. With coordinated inanimate or institutional subjects, singular agreement is common in formal prose; agreement can reflect animacy and whether the pair is construed as one combined topic.

نه مریم و نه برادرش رانندگی می‌کنند.

na maryam-o na barâdar-ash rânandegi mi-konand.

Neither Maryam nor her brother drives. (neutral standard; plural agreement with two people)

نه قیمت و نه رنگ این مدل برای ما اهمیت دارد.

na qeymat-o na rang-e in model barâ-ye mâ ahammiyat dârad.

Neither the price nor the color of this model matters to us. (formal-neutral; singular agreement with inanimate topics)

English rules that make the verb agree with the nearest conjunct do not transfer mechanically. In Persian, plural agreement is the safest neutral choice for two distinct people. Inanimate plural subjects permit more variation, especially in formal writing.

💡

The verb in basic نه ... نه is not “accidentally positive.” The two instances of نه already negate their alternatives. Treat the whole pair as a negative construction before deciding whether another negative element is present.

Split clauses and shared material

The construction can join whole clauses. Repeated material is normally omitted when it is easily recoverable. This produces natural gapping: the second clause contains نه plus only the contrasting remainder.

کاوه نه تماس گرفت، نه حتی یک پیام فرستاد.

kâve na tamâs gereft, na hattâ yek payâm ferestâd.

Kaveh neither called nor even sent a message. (neutral; two full predicates)

او نه پیشنهاد را پذیرفت، نه دلیلش را توضیح داد.

u na pishnehâd râ paziroft, na dalil-ash râ towzih dâd.

She neither accepted the proposal nor explained her reason. (careful spoken standard)

من نه امروز وقت دارم، نه فردا.

man na emruz vaqt dâram, na fardâ.

I have time neither today nor tomorrow. (neutral conversation; predicate omitted in the second conjunct)

In the last example, وقت دارم is understood after فردا. Ellipsis works because both conjuncts would contain the same subject and predicate. If omission would make the contrast unclear, repeat the verb.

When a negative verb does appear

Add a negative verb when an overt negative indefinite such as هیچ‌یک or هیچ‌کدام is the grammatical subject. Then Persian negative concord applies in the usual way:

نه نسخه‌ی چاپی و نه نسخه‌ی دیجیتال، هیچ‌کدام در کتابخانه موجود نبود.

na noskhe-ye châpi-o na noskhe-ye dijitâl, hich-kodâm dar ketâbkhâne mowjud na-bud.

Neither the print nor the digital version—neither was available in the library. (formal-neutral; inanimate هیچ‌کدام triggers a negative singular predicate)

Here the initial pair announces the alternatives, and هیچ‌کدام ... نبودند resumes them as “neither one.” Without هیچ‌کدام, the compact standard version is نه نسخه‌ی چاپی و نه نسخه‌ی دیجیتال موجود بود. Do not randomly alternate positive and negative verbs: identify whether نه ... نه alone supplies the negation or a negative indefinite is the clause’s argument.

This is a real area of usage variation. Informal speakers sometimes produce blended patterns, especially after a long paired subject. Edited prose observes the distinction more consistently. Learners should master the clear patterns rather than imitate every spontaneous blend.

Scope and the contrast with نه ... بلکه

Place each نه directly before the constituent it rejects. Compare object scope with predicate scope:

من نه گزارش را خواندم نه پیوست‌ها را.

man na gozâresh râ khândam na peyvast-hâ râ.

I read neither the report nor the attachments. (neutral; object contrast)

من گزارش را نه کامل خواندم نه با دقت.

man gozâresh râ na kâmel khândam na bâ deqqat.

I read the report neither completely nor carefully. (neutral; manner contrast)

The first denies reading either document. The second does not necessarily deny all reading; it denies two manners of reading. Position determines the alternatives under negation.

Do not confuse paired نه ... نه with corrective نه ... بلکه “not X but Y.” The former rejects both alternatives; the latter rejects the first and asserts the second.

مشکل نه کمبود بودجه، بلکه ضعف برنامه‌ریزی بود.

moshkel na kambud-e budje, balke za'f-e barnâme-rizi bud.

The problem was not a shortage of funds but weak planning. (formal; correction, not negative coordination)

💡

Ask whether the second phrase is rejected or asserted. Rejected: نه X نه Y. Asserted as the correction: نه X، بلکه Y.

Punctuation and و

In a compact pair, و is common between noun phrases (نه مدیر و نه معاون) but may be omitted, especially between predicates (نه آمد نه زنگ زد). A comma helps separate clause-sized or long conjuncts. Do not put a comma between every short word pair merely because English writes one before nor.

— آخر چه کسی جواب داد؟ — نه پشتیبانی پاسخ داد، نه مدیر فروش؛ مجبور شدم حضوری بروم.

— âkhar che kasi javâb dâd? — na poshtibâni pâsokh dâd, na modir-e forush; majbur shodam hozuri beravam.

— So who answered? — Neither support nor the sales manager answered; I had to go in person. (neutral conversation)

Common Mistakes

1. Leaving the verb affirmative after resumptive هیچ‌کدام

❌ نه سارا و نه پدرش، هیچ‌کدام ماشین دارند.

Incorrect — overt هیچ‌کدام requires ordinary negative concord on the verb.

✅ نه سارا و نه پدرش، هیچ‌کدام ماشین ندارند.

na Sârâ-o na pedar-ash, hich-kodâm mâshin na-dârand.

Neither Sara nor her father has a car. (resumptive هیچ‌کدام plus negative verb)

2. Using one نه for two alternatives

❌ من نه شنبه یا یکشنبه کار می‌کنم.

Incorrect for ‘neither Saturday nor Sunday’ — repeat نه before the second alternative.

✅ من نه شنبه کار می‌کنم نه یکشنبه.

man na shanbe kâr mi-konam na yekshanbe.

I work neither Saturday nor Sunday.

3. Using بلکه when both choices are rejected

⚠️ این اتاق نه پنجره دارد، بلکه بالکن.

in otâq na panjare dârad, balke bâlkon.

Grammatical with the corrective reading ‘this room has no window but does have a balcony’; it cannot reject both features.

✅ این اتاق نه پنجره دارد نه بالکن.

in otâq na panjare dârad na bâlkon.

This room has neither a window nor a balcony.

4. Using singular agreement for two people

⚠️ نه پزشک و نه پرستار هنوز رسیده است.

na pezeshk-o na parastâr hanuz reside ast.

Marked and non-neutral with two distinct human subjects; plural agreement is the safe contemporary standard.

✅ نه پزشک و نه پرستار هنوز رسیده‌اند.

na pezeshk-o na parastâr hanuz reside-and.

Neither the doctor nor the nurse has arrived yet.

Key Takeaways

نه ... نه can coordinate noun phrases, objects, predicates, or whole clauses.
In the basic construction it supplies negation itself, so the finite verb is commonly morphologically affirmative.
With resumptive هیچ‌یک/هیچ‌کدام, use the ordinary negative-concord verb.
Agreement depends on the coordinated subject’s animacy and construal; two people normally trigger plural agreement.
Put each نه immediately before the constituent whose alternative it rejects.

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