Я никому не даю свой пароль.

Breakdown of Я никому не даю свой пароль.

я
I
не
not
свой
my
давать
to give
пароль
the password
никому
anyone

Questions & Answers about Я никому не даю свой пароль.

Why is никому used here, and what does it literally mean?

Никому means to nobody or to no one.

It is the dative case form of никто (nobody). Russian uses the dative here because давать means to give, and the person who receives something goes in the dative:

  • давать кому?to give to whom?

So:

  • Я никому не даю свой пароль = I give my password to no one / I don’t give my password to anyone
Why are both никому and не negative? Isn’t that a double negative?

Yes, it is a double negative by English standards, but in Russian this is normal and required.

With negative pronouns like никто, ничто, никому, никогда, Russian normally also uses не with the verb:

  • Я никому не даю...
  • Он ничего не знает.
  • Мы никогда не спорим.

So in Russian, никому не даю is the correct standard pattern. You would not normally say Я никому даю...

Why is it даю and not дам?

Даю is from давать, the imperfective verb to give. Here it means a habitual, general, or repeated action:

  • I don’t give my password to anyone
  • I never give out my password

Дам is from дать, the perfective partner. It usually refers to a single completed future action:

  • Я никому не дам свой пароль = I won’t give my password to anyone

So:

  • не даю = I don’t give / I’m not in the habit of giving
  • не дам = I won’t give
Why is свой used instead of мой?

Russian often uses свой when the possessor is the same as the subject of the sentence.

Here, the subject is Я (I), and the password belongs to that same person, so свой пароль is the natural choice:

  • Я не даю свой пароль = I don’t give my password

Using мой пароль is possible, but свой is usually more idiomatic in this kind of sentence.

A simple way to think about it:

  • свой = one’s own
  • мой = my

So свой пароль is close to my own password.

What case is пароль in?

Пароль is in the accusative case because it is the direct object of даю:

  • даю что?пароль

Since пароль is a masculine inanimate noun, its accusative form is the same as its nominative form:

  • nominative: пароль
  • accusative: пароль

So nothing changes in spelling here.

How do I know that даю means I give?

Because даю is the 1st person singular form of давать.

Here are some present-tense forms of давать:

  • я даю — I give
  • ты даёшь — you give
  • он/она даёт — he/she gives
  • мы даём — we give
  • вы даёте — you give
  • они дают — they give

So the ending tells you it means I.

Can the word order be changed?

Yes. Russian word order is flexible, and changing it often changes the emphasis, not the basic meaning.

Neutral order:

  • Я никому не даю свой пароль.

A version with stronger emphasis on password:

  • Я свой пароль никому не даю.

A version without я:

  • Никому не даю свой пароль.

All of these can mean roughly the same thing, but the focus shifts slightly.

Can I leave out Я?

Yes, very often.

Because даю already shows I, Russian can omit the subject pronoun if it is clear from context:

  • Никому не даю свой пароль.

This is very natural in conversation. Including Я can sound a bit more explicit or contrastive:

  • Я никому не даю свой пароль.
    = I don’t give my password to anyone.
Is никому one word or two?

It is one word: никому.

Negative pronouns like this are normally written together:

  • никто — nobody
  • ничего — nothing
  • никогда — never
  • никому — to nobody

So the correct spelling is:

  • Я никому не даю свой пароль.

not

  • Я ни кому не даю...
How is this sentence stressed or pronounced?

A natural stress pattern is:

  • Я никомУ не даЮ свой парОль.

Approximate pronunciation:

  • ya nee-ka-MOO nye da-YOO svoy pa-ROL'

A few notes:

  • никому has stress on the last syllable: -му
  • даю has stress on the last syllable:
  • пароль has stress on the last syllable: -роль

Also, in careful writing the dictionary form is даёшь, даёт, даём, etc., but in normal typing Russians often write е instead of ё.

Could this sentence mean I am not giving my password right now, or is it only a general rule?

Most naturally, it sounds like a general rule or habit:

  • I don’t give my password to anyone
  • I never share my password

Because давать is imperfective, it often expresses repeated or habitual action.

In context, though, it can also describe a present situation:

  • Нет, я никому не даю свой пароль.
    = No, I’m not giving my password to anyone.

So the exact English translation depends on context, but the default sense is usually habitual/general.

AI Language TutorTry it ↗
What's the best way to learn Russian grammar?
Russian grammar becomes intuitive with practice. Focus on understanding the core patterns first — how sentences are structured, how verbs change form, and how words relate to each other. Our course breaks these concepts into small lessons so you can build understanding step by step.

Sign up free — start using our AI language tutor

Start learning Russian

Master Russian — from Я никому не даю свой пароль to fluency

All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.

  • Infinitely deep — unlimited vocabulary and grammar
  • Fast-paced — build complex sentences from the start
  • Unforgettable — efficient spaced repetition system
  • AI tutor to answer your grammar questions