Breakdown of Das Haus ist nicht neu. — Doch, es ist neu.
sein
to be
das Haus
the house
nicht
not
neu
new
doch
yes (contradicting a negative question)
Questions & Answers about Das Haus ist nicht neu. — Doch, es ist neu.
Why do we use nicht here instead of kein?
Doesn't nicht usually go at the very end of the sentence?
Often, yes! But when a sentence uses a form of 'to be' like ist (is) followed by an adjective describing the subject, nicht is placed directly in front of that adjective. That is why it sits right before neu.
Why does the reply start with Doch instead of Ja?
In German, you cannot use Ja to disagree with a negative statement. When someone says that something is NOT true, and you want to say 'Yes, it IS true!', you must use Doch. It is a special word for contradicting a negative statement.
Why does the second sentence use the pronoun es?
We use es (it) because Haus is a neuter noun (das Haus). In German, pronouns must match the grammatical gender of the noun they replace. If it were a masculine noun (der), we would use er, and for a feminine noun (die), we would use sie.
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