German 路 Chapter 4 路 Lesson 8 路 Grammar primer
Nicht or kein
German makes you choose between negating the verb and negating the noun, and the wrong choice is a different sentence.
The short version
Kein is k plus ein, and it goes where ein went
If the noun would have ein in front of it, or no article at all, negate it with kein. Everything else takes nicht: verbs, adjectives, places, and nouns with der, die, das or a possessive. Ich habe kein Buch means no book at all; Ich habe das Buch nicht means not that particular one.
Ich habe keine Zeit.
Nicht goes late, but stops before the last verb
To negate a whole sentence, push nicht towards the end: past the verb, the pronouns and the nouns with der. Stop it in front of an adjective, a place, or the infinitive or participle waiting at the end of the clause. So the neutral order is Ich kann heute nicht kommen.
Ich kenne den Mann nicht.
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