Explore Spanish coordinating conjunctions "Ni... ni..." to express negation, and "Así como" for comparisons, using examples like "No visitamos ni la frutería ni la carnicería" and "Visitamos el centro comercial así como la tienda de regalos."
  1. "Ni... ni..." is used to join two negative elements or to say "neither one nor the other".
  2. "Así como" is used to express a comparison or a relationship of equality.
Fórmula (Formula)Ejemplo (Example)
Ni + sustantivo + ni + sustantivo (Neither + noun + nor + noun)No visitamos ni la frutería ni la carnicería. (We do not visit either the fruit shop or the butcher's.)
Ni + pronombre + verbo + ni + pronombre + verbo (Ni + pronoun + verb + ni + pronoun + verb)Ni los atiende ni los escucha el dependiente. (Neither does the clerk serve them nor listen to them.)
Verbo + sustantivo + así como + sustantivo (Verb + noun + as well as + noun)Visitamos el centro comercial así como la tienda de regalos. (We visited the shopping centre as well as the gift shop.)

 

Exercise 1: Las conjunciones: "Ni... Ni...", "Así Como"

Instruction: Fill in the correct word.

Show translation Show answers

Ni, así como, ni

1.
... me gustan las rosas ... las margaritas.
(I neither like roses nor daisies.)
2.
... el cliente ... el dependiente tenía cambio.
(Neither the customer nor the shop assistant had change.)
3.
... ella ... yo fuimos al estanco.
(Neither she nor I went to the tobacconist's.)
4.
La floristería tiene muchas flores bonitas, ... el ramo de flores que compré.
(The flower shop has many beautiful flowers, as well as the bouquet of flowers that I bought.)
5.
Compramos dulces en la tienda de regalos ... en el estanco.
(We buy sweets in the gift shop as well as in the tobacconist's.)
6.
No compramos ... frutas ... verduras.
(We do not buy fruit or vegetables.)
7.
Visitamos la floristería ... la frutería.
(We visited the florists as well as the greengrocers.)
8.
No regalo ... flores ... bombones.
(I neither give flowers nor chocolates.)

Exercise 2: Multiple Choice

Instruction: Select the correct sentence in each block that appropriately uses the conjunctions "Neither... nor..." or "As well as" following the indicated grammatical rules.

1.
"And" is used for affirmations, not "nor" in this negative context.
"Neither... nor..." should not be used in affirmative sentences; it is incorrect.
2.
"Neither... nor..." is not appropriate here because the sentence is not negative.
It incorrectly combines conjunctions: "neither" and "as well as" are not used together this way.
3.
It uses "and" instead of "Neither... nor..."; it does not indicate negation as the structure requires.
Negation is missing; "Neither... nor..." requires the whole sentence to be negative.
4.
It incorrectly combines "neither" with "as well as" and lacks coherence.
The sentence is affirmative but uses "Neither... nor...", which is used for negative sentences.

Understanding Coordinating Conjunctions in Spanish: "Ni... ni..." and "Así como"

This lesson focuses on two important Spanish conjunctions that help you join words or phrases smoothly and meaningfully.

What Are Coordinating Conjunctions?

In Spanish, coordinating conjunctions connect elements of similar grammatical type – such as words, phrases, or clauses – to express relations like addition, contrast, or choice.

"Ni... ni...": Expressing Negatives with Two Elements

The conjunction pattern "Ni... ni..." is used to join two negative elements, which means it indicates that neither one nor the other applies.

  • It connects nouns, for example: No visitamos ni la frutería ni la carnicería.
  • It can also join subjects and verbs in negative sentences: Ni los atiende ni los escucha el dependiente.

"Así como": Showing Equality and Comparison

The conjunction "Así como" links two elements to express a comparison or equivalence between them.

  • Used with nouns or phrases, it shows that two things are equally involved or related: Visitamos el centro comercial así como la tienda de regalos.

Key Points to Remember

  • "Ni... ni..." always appears in negative contexts. The sentence usually has negation, like no.
  • "Así como" appears in affirmative sentences to express addition or comparison.
  • Don't mix "ni" and "así como" in a sentence as they serve different functions.

Useful Spanish Phrases and Their English Equivalents

  • "Ni... ni..." translates approximately as "neither... nor..." in English.
  • "Así como" can be thought of as "as well as" or "just as".
  • Example: No compré ni pan ni leche en la tienda. (I didn’t buy either bread or milk at the store.)
  • Example: Visitamos el mercado así como la librería cercana. (We visited the market as well as the nearby bookstore.)

Comparison of Instruction Language (English) and Spanish Conjunctions

English uses "neither... nor..." to express the same negation as Spanish "Ni... ni...". However, Spanish always requires the negative particle in the sentence, whereas in English, the double negative structure itself implies negation.

Meanwhile, "así como" in Spanish functions similarly to "as well as" or "just like" in English to join elements of similar importance or to compare.

Understanding these subtle distinctions will help you form natural and grammatically correct sentences in Spanish.

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This content has been designed and reviewed by the coLanguage pedagogical team: About coLanguage

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Alessia Calcagni

Languages for communication in international enterprises and organizations

Università degli Studi di Modena e Reggio Emilia

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Last Updated:

Monday, 01/09/2025 23:38