Infinitives
French: AQA GCSE (2025 Exams), topic 6.9.4
Negative Infinitives
To make an infinitive negative, you put the negative (e.g. 'ne pas') before the infinitive. This is only when the negative refers to the infinitive.
Ne pas
- Je préfère ne pas parler de la méteo.
- I prefer to not speak about the weather.
- Here the negative refers to 'speaking'.
Other negatives
- J'aime ne rien faire.
- I like to do nothing.
- Here the negative refers to 'faire'.
- Il était heureux de ne plus avoir besoin d'aller à l'école.
- He was happy that he no longer needed to go to school.
- Here, the negative refers to 'needing to'.
Test yourself on Infinitives
How do you say 'she prefers to not speak' in French?
How do you say 'I decided to no longer use a phone' in French?