Negation

Three negative words, and picking the wrong one is immediately audible.

• मैं नहीं जाता — I don't go.
• मत जाओ — Don't go.
• चलें न? — Shall we go, then?

Using नहीं in a command sounds like a statement of fact; using मत in a statement is simply wrong.

Position

नहीं goes directly before the verb — and it usually swallows the auxiliary with it:

• मैं जाता हूँ → मैं नहीं जाता (the हूँ drops)
• यह अच्छा है → यह अच्छा नहीं है (here it stays)

The auxiliary is optional after नहीं in the present habitual, and Hindi speakers leave it out more often than not.

कोई and कुछ

For "no one" and "nothing", Hindi pairs a word with नहीं:

• कोई नहीं आया — nobody came
• कुछ नहीं हुआ — nothing happened

Both halves are needed. Unlike Portuguese, the order is fixed: the कोई or कुछ comes first.

नहीं as "no"

The same word answers a question: क्या तुम आओगे? — नहीं. Politely, जी नहीं — a bare नहीं to an elder is curt.

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