The straight definition of the verb Negar (deny in spanish) if you look it up in the dictionary, is the act of denying or saying no to something. Having said this, we have the first glimpse of this verb, and we can start with this journey of learning and understanding, so no te niegues a aceptar este reto (do not deny this challenge.).
Negar, another member of the Irregular Family
Once again we meet an irregular verb, but do not worry, with practice you can master the Spanish tenses.
Negar Main Uses
As in refuse to do something (in this case, the direct translation to English is really “refuse”): Me niego a lavar los trastes que usó mi cuñado. (I refuse to do the dishes that my brother-in-law used.)
To reject a certain action or to give help: El taxista se negó a darles servicio a los jóvenes por estar borrachos. (The taxi driver denied the service to the boys for being all drunk.)
To decide not to admit facts of situations, usually in court or legal problems: Niego enérgicamente los hechos de los que se me acusan. (I emphatically deny the charges against me.)
“The prince could not continue to deny his love for Cinderella”: Verbals
Verbals are words that need other words in order to be used. No matter the person, tense, number, these words will remain the same (hooray!). The verb Negar has three verbals: the infinitive, the gerund and the participle. Let’s move on to the examples:
| Verbal | Common Use | Example | English | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Infinitive | Negar (to deny/denying) | Non conjugated/Noun | Negar la verdad es tonto. | To deny the truth is foolish. |
| Gerund | Negando (denying) | Adverb/periphrasis | No te sigas negando, hoy celebramos. | No more denying, we celebrate today. |
| Participle | Negado (denied) | Adjective | La moción fue negada por el juez. | The motion was denied by the judge. |
Let’s get down to business: Conjugate
Negar Conjugation: Indicative Mood
Considering the focus that is used when a person is speaking, what the verb or phrase is saying in general, the most common mood in Spanish is the indicative mood. Although less common, don’t forget that the auxiliary verb Haber (to have) is an important part of its compound tenses!
Simple Tenses of the Indicative Mood
| Subject | Present | Preterite | Imperfect | Conditional | Future |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| (Deny) | (Denied) | (Denied) | (Would Deny) | (Will Deny) | |
| Yo | Niego | Negué | Negaba | Negaría | Negaré |
| Tú | Niegas | Negaste | Negabas | Negarías | Negarás |
| Él/Ella/Usted | Niega | Negó | Negaba | Negaría | Negará |
| Nosotros | Negamos | Negamos | Negábamos | Negaríamos | Negaremos |
| Ellos/Ellas/Ustedes | Niegan | Negaron | Negaban | Negarían | Negarán |
Some examples:
- Johnny Depp negó haber golpeado a Amber Heard. (Johnny Depp denied having beaten Amber Heard.)
- Nadie sospechaba que Amber negaría tener una relación con Elon Musk. (Nobody suspected that Amber would deny having an affair with Elon Musk.)
Compound Tenses of the Indicative Mood
| Subject | Present | Preterite | Imperfect | Conditional | Future |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| (Have/Has Denied) | (Had Denied) | (Had Denied) | (Would Have Denied) | (Will Have Denied) | |
| Yo | He Negado | Hube Negado | Había Negado | Habría Negado | Habré Negado |
| Tú | Has Negado | Hubiste Negado | Habías Negado | Habrías Negado | Habrás Negado |
| Él/Ella/Usted | Ha Negado | Hubo Negado | Había Negado | Habría Negado | Habrá Negado |
| Nosotros | Hemos Negado | Hubimos Negado | Habíamos Negado | Habrían Negado | Habremos Negado |
| Ellos/Ellas/Ustedes | Han Negado | Hubieron Negado | Habían Negado | Habrían Negado | Habrán Negado |
Negar Conjugation: Subjunctive Mood
With subjunctive mood, we hypothesize or express our wishes. The number of verb tenses is reduced, being divided equally into simple and compound.
Simple Tenses of the Subjunctive Mood
| Subject | Present | Imperfect | Imperfect 2 | Future |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Yo | Niegue | Negara | Negase | Negare |
| Tú | Niegues | Negaras | Negases | Negares |
| Él/Ella/Usted | Niegue | Negara | Negase | Negare |
| Nosotros | Neguemos | Negáramos | Negásemos | Negáremos |
| Ellos/Ellas/Ustedes | Nieguen | Negaran | Negasen | Negaren |
More examples:
- Si negásemos el saber usar las laptops, quizá nos despedirían. (If we denied knowing how to use the laptops, we might get fired.)
- Es muy difícil que él negase la paternidad, el niño se parece mucho a él. (It is very difficult for him to deny the paternity, the child looks exactly like him.)
Compound Tenses of the Subjunctive Mood
| Subject | Present | Imperfect | Imperfect 2 | Future |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Yo | Haya Negado | Hubiera Negado | Hubiese Negado | Hubiere Negado |
| Tú | Hayas Negado | Hubieras Negado | Hubieses Negado | Hubieres Negado |
| Él/Ella/Usted | Haya Negado | Hubiera Negado | Hubiese Negado | Hubiere Negado |
| Nosotros | Hayamos Negado | Hubiéramos Negado | Hubiésemos Negado | Hubiéremos Negado |
| Ellos/Ellas/Ustedes | Hayan Negado | Hubieran Negado | Hubiesen Negado | Hubieren Negado |
Negar Conjugation: Imperative Mood
We enter the last mood you are going to memorize, with fewer people to learn (fortunately): the bossy (or Imperative) mood. With this conjugation, you can express orders. And since you can’t order yourself or a third party, you will only learn 3 persons and 1 verb tense. Possible uses of the Imperative mood? Children, pets, or that roomie who won’t stop eating your stuff.
Imperative Mood’s Conjugations
| Subject | Affirmative | Negative |
|---|---|---|
| (Deny / Let's Deny) | (Don't Deny / Let's Not Deny) | |
| Tú | Niegas | No Niegas |
| Nosotros | Neguemos | No Neguemos |
| Ustedes | Nieguen | No Nieguen |
Examples:
- No niegas la veracidad de lo ocurrido. (You do not deny the veracity of what happened.)
- Neguemos su solicitud por unos días a ver cómo reaccionan. (Let’s deny their request for a few days to see how they react.)
Negar Verb – Quiz/Worksheet
Fill in the correct conjugation in the spaces below:
1. El acusado no se atrevió a _____________ las acusaciones. (The accused did not dare to deny the accusations.)
2. Ella ____________ su amor por los animales y sin embargo tiene 28 gatos en su casa. (She denied her love for the animals and yet she has 28 cats at home.)
3. ____________ que eso haya pasado y olvidémoslo. (Let´s deny all this happened and forget about it.)
4. No_____________ que están enamorados, se les nota en la cara. (Do not deny you are both in love, you show it in your face.)
5. Si yo _______________ ser el culpable, no me habría castigado mi madre. (If I had denied being guilty, my mother would not have punished me.)
6. Si ella ____________ nuestra relación, yo moriría de dolor. (If she denied our relationship, I would die in pain.)
7. Johnny Depp _____________ varias veces ser un mal esposo. (Johnny Depp has denied being a bad husband many times.)
8. ¿Has _____________ alguna vez ser mexicano? (Have you ever denied being mexican?)
9. Si vieras su hermosa cara, no ______________ ninguno de sus deseos (If you saw her beautiful face, you would not deny her every wish.)
10. Su visa de trabajo fue _________ por no tener empleo aun en Canadá. (His working visa was denied for not having a job yet in Canada.)
Answers
Here you can confirm if you got the answers right, remember that it’s okay to make mistakes, don’t lose sleep over a few mistakes, keep practicing every day!
1. Negar
2. Negó
3. Neguemos
4. Nieguen
5. Hubiese negado
6. Negara
7. Ha negado
8. Negado
9. Negarías
10. Negada
Fun fact
The title of this class refers to the origins of a person. In colonial times, each city and neighborhood had a church or a chapel devoted to a certain saint, the patron of that area. When saying that you no niegas la cruz de tu parroquia (you cannot deny the cross of your parish) it means that the people of that area act in a certain way (sociodemographic culture) or follow certain rites, and thus you are identifiable as a person belonging to that parish.
Nowadays, it actually has a negative connotation: vices from that area get attached to you, as happens with some famous areas in New York or Los Angeles.
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