Ninguém vs. Nenhum in Portuguese: “Nobody” or “Not Any”?
Ninguém stands alone for nobody; nenhum usually accompanies or refers back to a noun and agrees in gender and number.
Real Life Portuguese · 5 min read · Updated October 15, 2026
The short answer
Ninguém means nobody or no one and normally stands on its own: ninguém respondeu. It refers to people and does not change to a feminine form.
Use ninguém as a pronoun for people
Ninguém already carries negative meaning, so Brazilian Portuguese commonly says ninguém chegou without another não before the verb.
Ninguém atendeu ao telefone.
Nobody answered the phone.
Não conheço ninguém nesta cidade.
I don’t know anyone in this city.
Use nenhum or nenhuma with a noun
Nenhum and nenhuma mean no, none, or not any when they refer to a noun. Match the form to that noun: nenhum problema, nenhuma pergunta. Plural forms exist, though the singular is common in many everyday examples.
Nenhum can stand alone when the listener already knows the noun: algum ingresso? nenhum (any tickets? none).
Não recebi nenhuma mensagem.
I didn’t receive any messages.
Nenhum dos meus amigos conhece o lugar.
None of my friends know the place.
Compare a person with a missing item
Compare não veio ninguém (nobody came) with não chegou nenhum pacote (no package arrived). The first points to people; the second identifies a missing noun.
English ‘not any’ can refer to people or things, which makes nenhum tempting everywhere. Use ninguém when the pronoun itself means no one; use nenhum or nenhuma with the noun you identify.
Tinha algum lugar disponível? Não, nenhum.
Was there any seat available? No, none.
Tinha alguém na recepção? Não, ninguém.
Was anyone at reception? No, nobody.
Put it into practice
Use ninguém for ‘nobody’ and nenhum or nenhuma for ‘no/not any’ with a noun or understood item.
Quick practice
Which Portuguese example matches “Nobody answered the phone”?
Choose an answer to check yourself.
Keep practicing with the Real Life Portuguese app
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