No quiero fumar.

In Spanish, no normally goes directly before the conjugated verb to make the sentence negative.

• Quiero fumar = I want to smoke.
• No quiero fumar = I do not want to smoke.

So the pattern is very straightforward:

• no + verb

Here, the conjugated verb is quiero, so no goes before it.

Quiero means I want.

It is the first person singular form of the verb querer (to want).

So:

• quiero = I want
• quieres = you want
• quiere = he/she/it wants

In this sentence, quiero is the main verb.

Because after querer in this kind of sentence, Spanish uses the infinitive.

So the structure is:

• querer + infinitive

Examples:

• Quiero comer = I want to eat
• Quiero dormir = I want to sleep
• No quiero fumar = I do not want to smoke

Here:

• quiero = I want
• fumar = to smoke

You would not say No quiero fumo, because that would be like saying I want I smoke, which does not work in Spanish.

It is understood in the verb quiero.

Spanish often leaves out subject pronouns when they are clear from the verb ending. Since quiero already means I want, you do not need to say yo.

So:

• No quiero fumar = I do not want to smoke
• Yo no quiero fumar = I do not want to smoke

Both are correct, but yo is often omitted unless you want emphasis, contrast, or clarity.

Yes, absolutely.

• No quiero fumar = neutral, natural
• Yo no quiero fumar = adds emphasis to I

You might use yo if you are contrasting yourself with someone else:

• Él sí quiere fumar, pero yo no quiero fumar.
  • He does want to smoke, but I do not.

In many everyday situations, the version without yo is more natural.

Yes. Querer is a stem-changing verb.

In the present tense, the e in the stem changes to ie in most forms:

• yo quiero
• tú quieres
• él/ella quiere
• nosotros queremos
• vosotros queréis
• ellos quieren

So quiero comes from querer, and the stem changes from quer- to quier-.

This is very common in Spanish and is something learners need to get used to.

No. Spanish does not use a separate word like English to here.

In English:

• I want to smoke

In Spanish:

• Quiero fumar

That is because fumar is already the infinitive form, equivalent to to smoke.

So fumar by itself already includes the idea of to smoke.

No. After querer, you normally use the infinitive directly, with no extra preposition.

Correct:

• Quiero fumar
• No quiero fumar

Not correct:

• Quiero de fumar
• Quiero a fumar

A very useful pattern to remember is:

• querer + infinitive

A simple pronunciation guide is:

• No ≈ noh
• quiero ≈ KYEH-roh
• fumar ≈ foo-MAR

A few details:

• In quiero, the quie- sounds like kye-
• The r in quiero is a single tapped r, not a strong rolled rr
• In fumar, the stress is on the last syllable: fu-MAR

A rough full pronunciation:

• noh KYEH-roh foo-MAR

Usually it means I don't want to smoke in a general or current sense, and context decides the exact meaning.

It could mean:

• right now, I do not want to smoke
• in general, I do not want to smoke

If you want to make the time clearer, you can add something:

• No quiero fumar ahora. = I do not want to smoke now.
• No quiero fumar más. = I do not want to smoke anymore.

So the basic sentence is flexible, and context tells you how specific it is.

They mean different things.

• No quiero fumar = I do not want to smoke
• No fumo = I do not smoke / I am not smoking

So:

• No quiero fumar talks about desire or willingness
• No fumo talks about action or habit

For example:

• No quiero fumar ahora. = I do not want to smoke now.
• No fumo. = I do not smoke / I'm a non-smoker.

Sometimes, depending on context, yes, but the most natural basic meaning is simply I don't want to smoke.

Spanish often uses the infinitive more broadly than English learners expect. If you wanted to be more explicit about an ongoing action, you might use a different structure, but in normal conversation:

• No quiero fumar is the natural way to say I don't want to smoke

Most of the time, that is all you need.

You can soften it by adding expressions such as:

• No quiero fumar, gracias. = I don't want to smoke, thank you.
• Prefiero no fumar. = I prefer not to smoke.
• Ahora no quiero fumar. = I don't want to smoke right now.

Prefiero no fumar can sound a little softer or more diplomatic than No quiero fumar, depending on the situation.

Yes. You can expand the sentence easily.

Examples:

• No quiero fumar aquí. = I don't want to smoke here.
• No quiero fumar ahora. = I don't want to smoke now.
• No quiero fumar contigo. = I don't want to smoke with you.
• No quiero fumar más. = I don't want to smoke anymore.

The core pattern stays the same:

• No quiero + infinitive + extra information

Yes, it is completely natural and standard in Spain.

It is a simple, correct everyday sentence that any Spanish speaker in Spain would understand immediately. It works well in normal conversation, whether you are refusing a cigarette, talking about smoking in general, or expressing a preference.