No, gracias. No quiero comer ahora.
No, thank you. I do not want to eat now.
The first no answers an offer. The second no belongs before quiero in a full negative sentence.
Say no, and explain what you do not want
Extend your requests with a clear negative answer. Distinguish no quiero, no quiero nada and nadie quiere without importing English double-negative rules.
What you will be able to do
Decline an offer, negate a request, and place no correctly when using nada or nadie. Explain the difference between a negative answer and a negative sentence.
Lesson 2 of 2 in this Spanish path.
Before you start
Complete the request lesson first. You should recognize quiero, quieres and quiere, plus the infinitives comer (eat), comprar (buy) and esperar (wait). Ahora means now; más means more.
How to use this lesson
- Start with the offer and decide whether you are answering no or describing what you do not want.
- Underline the person-marked verb. Place no before that verb, then compare the nada and nadie patterns.
- Write the four answers before checking them. Finish with a two-turn exchange for an offer you might actually receive.
Learn the pattern
An answer and a sentence do different jobs
No, gracias is a complete short refusal: “No, thank you.” In No quiero comer ahora, no negates quiero: “I do not want to eat now.” Spanish does not add an equivalent of English do here. Keep comer as an infinitive after quiero.
Nada after the verb needs a negative before it
Nada refers to no thing: No quiero nada means “I do not want anything.” No quiero nada más means you want nothing else. In this ordinary statement, quiero nada is not the intended standard pattern. No and nada work together; they do not cancel each other into a positive meaning.
A negative word before the verb changes the pattern
Nadie refers to no person. Nadie quiere esperar means “Nobody wants to wait.” With nadie before quiere, do not add no: Nadie no quiere esperar is not the ordinary standard sentence intended here. These examples cover straightforward statements, not rhetorical questions or special emphatic uses.
Worked examples
¿Quieres comprar algo?
Do you want to buy something? (tú)
Algo means something. Quieres asks about the listener’s wish; the question does not require an English-style do.
No quiero nada más, gracias.
I do not want anything else, thank you.
Nada follows quiero, so no precedes the verb. Más narrows the refusal to anything further.
Nadie quiere esperar.
Nobody wants to wait.
Nadie is before the person-marked verb quiere. There is no extra no; esperar remains an infinitive.
Build it step by step
- Imagine you have finished an order and hear ¿Quieres comprar algo más? — “Do you want to buy anything else?”
- For a short reply, say No, gracias. To practise a full sentence, start with the speaker’s form quiero.
- You want to rule out any further item: add nada más after quiero, and no before it. Your sentence is No quiero nada más, gracias.
- Now change the situation: nobody in your group wants to wait. Begin with nadie and use quiere: Nadie quiere esperar. Do not carry the earlier no into this new pattern.
Try it before looking
Write or say each answer first. Open the explanation to check the pattern, then close it and try again. These are self-checks; your answers are not stored by this page.
1. Negate Quiero comprar un billete without changing the person or action.
Show answer and explanation
No quiero comprar un billete.
Put no before the person-marked verb quiero. Comprar stays in its infinitive form.
2. Finish a refusal meaning “I do not want anything else”: ___ quiero ___ más, gracias.
Show answer and explanation
No quiero nada más, gracias.
Nada after the verb pairs with no before it in this ordinary negative statement.
3. Repair “Nobody wants to eat now”: Nadie no quiere comer ahora.
Show answer and explanation
Nadie quiere comer ahora.
Nadie already comes before the verb. Remove the extra no; the sentence remains negative.
4. Someone asks ¿Quieres comer aquí? You do not want to eat here. Give a short refusal, then a full sentence.
Show answer and explanation
No, gracias. No quiero comer aquí.
The short answer declines the offer. The full sentence uses quiero for your own wish, no before it, and aquí for here. Other courteous wording is possible.
Keep and use the result
For the ordinary statements here, put no before the person-marked verb. Keep no when nada follows that verb; omit it when nadie already precedes the verb.
Write an offer with ¿Quieres…? and two replies: acceptance using quiero, then refusal using no quiero. Add an “anything else?” reply with nada más. Keep all three in your notes and return to the earlier request lesson if the person-marked form is still uncertain.
Sources and scope
Grammar references checked October 28, 2026. Teaching examples and exercises are original. This is a focused learning unit, with no recorded audio or human teaching review claimed.