Learn Spanish (Spain): No, no tenemos ninguna duda.

No, no tenemos ninguna duda.

No, we do not have any doubts.

Breakdown of No, no tenemos ninguna duda.

Questions & Answers about No, no tenemos ninguna duda.

The English translation says 'doubts' in the plural, but the Spanish sentence uses the singular 'duda'. Why?

In Spanish, the negative determiner ninguno and its forms like ninguna are almost always used in the singular. While English speakers usually say 'I don't have any doubts' in the plural, Spanish speakers literally say 'We don't have not one doubt'. Because of this, you must pair the singular noun duda with ninguna.

Why does this sentence use 'ninguna' instead of the shortened form 'ningún'?

The word ninguna describes the noun duda, which is feminine. The shortened form ningún is only used right before masculine singular nouns, such as in ningún problema. Since duda is feminine, we must use the full feminine form ninguna.

Is it grammatically correct to use both 'no' and 'ninguna' for the same verb?

Yes, it is completely correct and actually required! Spanish frequently uses double negatives. Whenever a negative word like ninguna comes after the verb, you must put a no before the verb. Unlike in English, the two negatives do not cancel each other out; they work together to reinforce the negative meaning.

Why are there two 'no's right next to each other at the beginning?

The very first No is simply answering a previous question, just like in English. The second no is the start of the actual sentence, placed right before the verb tenemos to make it negative so that it means 'we do not have'.