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No hizo esfuerzo alguno por ayudarnos.

No hizo esfuerzo alguno por ayudarnos.
He made no effort at all to help us.
From Lesson 357:Strong negation (sin duda alguna, no tengo prisa ninguna)·Spanish (Spain)

Questions & Answers about No hizo esfuerzo alguno por ayudarnos.

Why is alguno used here if the sentence is negative, and why does it come after esfuerzo?
When you place alguno immediately after a singular noun in a negative sentence, it adds strong emphasis, meaning "none at all" or "whatsoever". So, no hizo esfuerzo alguno means "he made absolutely no effort". If the word came before the noun, you would use ningún instead.
Why do we use por here instead of para?
While para generally translates to "in order to", the noun esfuerzo (effort) is conventionally followed by the preposition por when introducing the action being attempted. It expresses the struggle or motivation directed toward a goal.
Could I just say No hizo ningún esfuerzo por ayudarnos instead?
Yes, that is perfectly correct and very common. No hizo ningún esfuerzo is the standard way to say "he made no effort". The phrase no hizo esfuerzo alguno is slightly more formal and emphatic.

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