Meaning
Emphasizing the absence of something.
Cultural Background
In Spain, 'ni tan siquiera' is extremely common and adds a bit more rhythmic emphasis to the sentence. Mexicans often use 'ni siquiera' with a specific intonation to express 'I can't believe it' (indignación). In the Rioplatense region, you might hear 'ni' used alone very forcefully where others would use the full phrase. In many regions, 'ni siquiera' is used to emphasize social class or education levels in a descriptive way.
The 'No' Sandwich
Remember: No + Verb + Ni Siquiera. It's the safest way to use it without making a mistake.
Positive Pitfall
Never use 'ni siquiera' to mean 'even' in a positive sentence. Use 'incluso' instead.
Meaning
Emphasizing the absence of something.
The 'No' Sandwich
Remember: No + Verb + Ni Siquiera. It's the safest way to use it without making a mistake.
Positive Pitfall
Never use 'ni siquiera' to mean 'even' in a positive sentence. Use 'incluso' instead.
Drama Level
Use it when you want to sound more native and expressive. 'No lo sé' is a fact; 'Ni siquiera lo sé' is a feeling.
Test Yourself
Fill in the blank with 'ni siquiera' or 'incluso'.
No tengo hambre, no quiero ________ un postre.
The sentence is negative ('no quiero'), so we use 'ni siquiera' for emphasis.
Choose the grammatically correct sentence.
Which of these is correct?
When 'ni siquiera' starts the sentence, we don't need 'no' before the verb.
Complete the dialogue with the most natural response.
A: ¿Te gustó la fiesta? B: ¡Qué va! ________.
'¡Qué va!' indicates a negative opinion, so 'ni siquiera' is the natural choice to explain why.
Match the sentence to the situation.
Sentence: 'Ni siquiera me miró.'
The phrase is commonly used to express social slights or being ignored.
🎉 Score: /4
Visual Learning Aids
Word Order Rules
Practice Bank
4 exercisesNo tengo hambre, no quiero ________ un postre.
The sentence is negative ('no quiero'), so we use 'ni siquiera' for emphasis.
Which of these is correct?
When 'ni siquiera' starts the sentence, we don't need 'no' before the verb.
A: ¿Te gustó la fiesta? B: ¡Qué va! ________.
'¡Qué va!' indicates a negative opinion, so 'ni siquiera' is the natural choice to explain why.
Sentence: 'Ni siquiera me miró.'
The phrase is commonly used to express social slights or being ignored.
🎉 Score: /4
Frequently Asked Questions
10 questionsRarely. In modern Spanish, 'siquiera' on its own means 'at least', but it's much more common to use 'al menos'. Usually, you need the 'ni'.
Neither is 'more' correct. 'Ni tan siquiera' is just more emphatic and very common in Spain.
No, it is an adverbial phrase and remains 'ni siquiera' regardless of what you are talking about.
Yes! 'No vino ni siquiera nadie' is technically possible but redundant. Better: 'Ni siquiera vino nadie'.
'Tampoco' means 'neither' (agreeing with a negative). 'Ni siquiera' means 'not even' (adding emphasis).
Not inherently, but because it's emphatic, it can sound strong or frustrated depending on your tone.
You say: 'Ni siquiera lo sé' or 'No lo sé ni siquiera'.
Yes. '¿Ni siquiera vas a probarlo?' (Aren't you even going to try it?)
Yes, to emphasize that certain minimum targets or conditions were not met.
In casual speech, people often shorten phrases. 'No tengo ni un euro' is a shorter way of saying 'No tengo ni siquiera un euro'.
Related Phrases
Ni por asomo
synonymNot by a long shot / Not even close
Ni mucho menos
similarFar from it / Not by any means
Incluso
contrastEven (positive)
Tampoco
similarNeither / Not either
