Learn Hardcore Russian: Сегодня нигде не работает интернет. - Today the internet is not working anywhere.

Russian uses negative concord. Words with the prefix ни- (like нигде, никто, никогда) require не on the verb: нигде не работает. Without не, the sentence is ungrammatical in modern Russian.

Could I replace не работает with нет and say “Сегодня нигде нет интернета”?

Yes, but it changes nuance. Сегодня нигде не работает интернет emphasizes malfunction (“isn’t working anywhere”). Сегодня нигде нет интернета says there is no internet at all (absence). With нет, the noun goes to genitive: интернета.

Why is интернет at the end? Is that normal word order?

Yes. Russian word order is flexible and often used for emphasis. Placing the subject last (…работает интернет) makes “internet” the new/focused information. More neutral options: Сегодня интернет нигде не работает or Интернет сегодня нигде не работает. All are correct; they differ in what is highlighted.

Where else can I put сегодня?

You can move it almost anywhere without changing basic meaning: Сегодня нигде…, Нигде сегодня…, …сегодня нигде…. Position shifts emphasis slightly (what the speaker frames first), but all are fine.

Can I omit интернет and just say “Сегодня нигде не работает”?

Only if the context makes the subject obvious (e.g., everyone’s talking about the internet). Otherwise it sounds incomplete. The given sentence is not impersonal: the explicit subject is интернет.

Why is не written separately from работает?

With finite verbs, не is written separately: не работает, не знает. It’s joined to some non-finite or lexicalized forms (e.g., ненавидеть is a different verb), but the rule here is “separate with conjugated verbs.”

Why present simple работает and not a progressive form?

Russian has one present tense that covers both English “works” and “is working.” (Не) работает here means “(isn’t) working” right now or generally, depending on context.

Pronunciation: where is the stress?

сегóдня (the “о” is pronounced like [о] under stress; the first “е” reduces)
нигдé
рабóтает
интернéт
So: сегóдня нигдé не рабóтает интернéт.

What’s the difference between нигде не работает and не везде работает?

нигде не работает = “it works nowhere” (zero places).
не везде работает = “it doesn’t work everywhere” (some places yes, some no).
Avoid везде не работает unless you strongly emphasize “everywhere”; it’s rarer and can be misread. нигде не is the clear, standard way to express “nowhere.”

Does нигде refer to literally the whole world?

On its own, нигде means “nowhere,” but the scope is set by context. In real life it often means “nowhere in our office/city/provider’s network.” You can add a limiter: Сегодня нигде в городе не работает интернет, Сегодня нигде у нас не работает интернет.

What’s the gender and case of интернет here?

Интернет is a regular masculine inanimate noun. In this sentence it’s nominative singular (the subject). It declines: интернет, интернета, интернету, интернет, интернетом, интернете.

Why работает (3rd singular) and not работают?

Because the subject интернет is singular. Нигде doesn’t affect number; it’s an adverb.

Are there common alternatives or more colloquial ways to say this?

Yes:

Сегодня нигде нет интернета (absence).
Сегодня везде лёг интернет / интернет лёг (slang: “the internet went down”).
Интернет сегодня отваливается (slang: keeps dropping).
Сегодня нигде Wi‑Fi не ловит (specifically Wi‑Fi).
Связь пропала повсюду (the connection is gone everywhere).

Is the capitalization of интернет correct?

Yes. Modern style guides recommend lowercase интернет except at the start of a sentence. Capitalized Интернет still appears but is increasingly avoided in contemporary Russian.

Why use работает with интернет? Isn’t работать “to work (a person)”?

In Russian, работать is commonly used for devices and services meaning “to function, to be operational.” So интернет (не) работает, телефон (не) работает, лифт (не) работает are all standard.