Questions & Answers about Я никогда ничего не забываю.
Wait, this sentence has three negative words! Is that normal?
Yes! Russian uses multiple negation. If you have negative words like никогда (never) or ничего (nothing), you must also put не (not) in front of the verb. Literally, this sentence translates to: I never nothing not forget.
Why is 'anything' translated as ничего (nothing)?
In Russian negative sentences, English words like 'anything' or 'ever' become their negative equivalents. Because the action is negated with не, you must use ничего (nothing) instead of a word for 'anything'.
Does the не have to be right next to the verb?
Yes, the negative particle не must go immediately before the verb it negates (забываю). The other negative words like никогда and ничего generally come before не, but their exact order with each other is flexible.
Why is ничего pronounced with a 'v' sound instead of a 'g'?
The word ничего ends in -его, which is a special grammatical ending. In Russian, the letters -его and -ого at the end of a word are always pronounced with a 'v' sound instead of a 'g'. It sounds like 'nee-che-VO'.
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