N'y va pas

chris w.C1Kwiziq Q&A regular contributor

'N'y va pas' is translated as 'Don't go there', and ' Don't go anywhere' is marked wrong. Yet 'On y va' means 'Let's go' The 'there' is implicit. Surely 'N'y va pas' is the negative of 'On y va'? so ought to be translated as 'Don't go'. In English the 'there' makes it too definite, you would have to have a destination in mind, rather than just leaving somewhere. 'Anywhere' is a better translation, surely?

This question relates to:French lesson "Position of French object and adverbial pronouns in negative commands in the imperative mood (L'Impératif) in French"

Asked 3 years ago

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Chris W.C1 Kwiziq Q&A super contributor Correct answer

"On y va" is an idiomatic phrase that's better not used as a model to deduce other uses of "y". It's translation of "let's go!" is not a literal rendition of the French phrase.

Vas-y! -- Go there!
N'y va pas! -- Don't go there!

Don't go anywhere. -- Ne va nulle part / ne va pas n'importe où

Like13 years ago

chris w. asked:View original

N'y va pas

'N'y va pas' is translated as 'Don't go there', and ' Don't go anywhere' is marked wrong. Yet 'On y va' means 'Let's go' The 'there' is implicit. Surely 'N'y va pas' is the negative of 'On y va'? so ought to be translated as 'Don't go'. In English the 'there' makes it too definite, you would have to have a destination in mind, rather than just leaving somewhere. 'Anywhere' is a better translation, surely?

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