Introduction

In Dutch negation (i.e. stating that something is not the case) mainly happens in two ways, depending on what is negated. Niet is used in most cases, but geen is used when negating an indefinite noun or noun group.

As a rule of thumb we can say that English ‘not’ is normally niet in Dutch, and an English negation with ‘no’ is normally rendered with geen in Dutch:

Negation with niet

Niet is used for negation in three different cases. It is used for general negation, negation of a definite noun or noun group, and before a preposition.

1. Sometimes, an entire sentence is negated. We then speak of general negation:
   

   Ik sport zaterdags niet.
   I don’t do sports on a Saturday.

   Ik studeer vandaag niet.
   I am not studying today.

2. It is also possible to negate a definite noun or noun group. In both examples below, niet precedes a definite article or another defining word, such as a demonstrative pronoun or a possessive pronoun. In the examples, the definite noun group is underlined.
   

   Dat is niet de auto van mijn vader.
   That is not my father’s car.

   Het is niet die rode auto.
   It is not that red car.

   Dat is niet mijn auto.
   That is not my car.

3. The word niet is also used before a preposition in a negation:
   

   Sara en Simone zijn niet op dieet.
   Sara and Simone are not on a diet.

   Simone houdt niet van koken.
   Simone does not like cooking.

   Engelse cafés lijken niet op Nederlandse cafés.
   English bars do not resemble Dutch bars.

Place of niet in the sentence

In theory, niet precedes whatever is negated, except in general negation, in which case niet follows at the end of the sentence. Compare:

In the latter case, it is the book that is negated; in the first example, the entire clause hij koopt het boek is negated. In practice however, people are inclined to put niet after the object (definite) in both cases. The same happens with adverbs of time.

There is no such ambiguity with niet before:

1. an indefinite object:
   Alan kent nog niet veel mensen in Rotterdam.
   Alan does not yet know many people in Rotterdam.
2. adjectives and adverbs:
   Nederlands is niet moeilijk.
   Dutch is not hard.
3. prepositions:
   Ik ga niet op vakantie.
   I am not going on a holiday.

Negation with geen

The word geen is used to negate an indefinite noun or noun group, and always occurs directly before the noun (group) it negates. Look at the following examples:

Use of wel

When wel is used in or near a sentence with a negation, it is used as the opposite of geen or niet. Wel does not translate directly into English, but in the English equivalent emphasis would be placed on the finite verb (usually a form of the verb ‘to do’ is inserted to express this emphasis):

Note that wel appears in the same place as niet or geen.

Other negative elements

Other negative elements in Dutch are niets, nooit, niemand or nergens. Technically, niets and niemand are negative indefinite pronouns, and nooit and nergens negative adverbs (of time and place respectively).