Negation: no, nogat, noken, nonap — Tok Pisin Grammar

Negation needs no change to the verb. There is nothing like English "doesn't" or "didn't", no extra auxiliary appearing out of nowhere, and no agreement to get right. One short word goes in front of the verb and the sentence is negative.

The Everyday Negator

stands immediately before whatever it negates. The verb itself is untouched.

Mi no sik.
I am not sick.
Mi no laikim.
I don't like it.
Mi no kam leit.
I didn't come late.
Mi no lukim dispela.
I didn't see this.
Mi no ting olsem.
I don't think so.

Compare the English. "I don't like it" needs a helper verb "do", carrying the tense, plus "not"; the main verb then has to appear in its bare form. Tok Pisin adds one word and changes nothing else.

Where 'no' Sits

The negator goes after the predicate marker and before the verb. This never varies.

Em i no hevi.
It isn't heavy.
Ples i no hat.
The place isn't hot.
Ol i no amamas.
They aren't happy.
Meri ya i no slip.
That woman isn't asleep.
Em i no luk gut.
It doesn't look good.

Negating a Marked Verb

When the verb already carries one of the tense or mood markers, goes in front of that marker rather than in front of the verb. The order is fixed: , , , , - never the other way round.

Ol i no save long mi.
They don't know me.
Em i no save malolo kwik.
He doesn't usually rest quickly.
Em i no bin i go long skul.
He did not go to school.
Ol i no bin tingting long mi.
They did not think about me.

The future marker is the exception, because it belongs to the sentence rather than to the verb. It stays out in front, ahead of both the subject and the negator.

Bai em i no bruk hariap.
It won't break quickly.
Bai em i no inap bruk.
It won't be able to break.

Prohibitions with 'noken'

A command is made negative with - "don't". It is the ordinary way to tell someone not to do something, and it is not impolite in itself.

Noken wari.
Don't worry.
Noken dring dispela.
Don't drink this.
Noken kaikai dispela.
Don't eat this.
Noken sindaun tasol.
Don't just sit around.

Inability with 'nonap'

is the negative of and covers both "cannot" and "will not manage to".

Mi nonap lukim yu.
I can't see you.
Mi no inap go yet.
I can't go yet.
Yu no inap kam insait.
You can't come in.

One Word or Two

Tok Pisin spelling is not fully standardised, and plus a following short word may be written joined or separate. You will see and , and , and . These are spelling choices, not grammatical differences - treat the joined and separate forms as the same word.

No Word for 'Nothing'

English has a set of negative words - nothing, nobody, never, none. Tok Pisin has none of these. It negates the verb in the usual way and, where English would say "any", uses , literally "one".

Ol i no mekim wanpela wok.
They didn't do any work.
Mi no sot long wanpela samting.
I don't lack a single thing.
Mipela i noken lusim wanpela mun.
We must not miss a single month.

In the course

Sentences from Lingora’s Tok Pisin course

84 of the course's 500 sentences use this, the first in lesson 16. A few of them, with the words “Negation: no, nogat, noken, nonap” is about in bold:

Man ya tu slip. Meri ya i no slip.
He is also sleeping. She isn't.
Lesson 16
Mi pilim orait. Mi no sik. Mi stap gut.
I feel great! I am not sick. I am healthy.
Lesson 64
Meri ya gat wanpela kar i save ron isi stret, dispela kar i no bikpela mani bilong em.
She has a slow, cheap car.
Lesson 110

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