This exam tips covers Exam Tips & Common Errors within Negation (nicht, kein) and possessives (mein, dein, sein) for GCSE German. Revise Negation (nicht, kein) and possessives (mein, dein, sein) in Core Grammar Toolkit for GCSE German with 10 exam-style questions and 15 flashcards. This topic shows up very often in GCSE exams, so students should be able to explain it clearly, not just recognise the term. It is section 5 of 5 in this topic. Treat this as a marking guide for what examiners are looking for, not just a fact list.
💡 Exam Tips & Common Errors
- Quick test: if the word you want to negate would take ein (or no article at all), use kein. Otherwise use nicht.
- Watch the endings — in the accusative, masculine nouns make kein and the possessives end in -en: keinen Hund, meinen Bruder.
- Be careful with sein (his) versus ihr (her) — they are a common source of marks lost in writing tasks.
- Use a possessive plus a negative in one sentence to show range: Ich habe keine Zeit für meine Freunde.
❌ Common error: Ich habe nicht einen Hund.
✓ Correct: Ich habe keinen Hund.
Why it costs marks: to negate a noun introduced by ein, German uses kein, never nicht ein. Ich habe keinen Hund (I have no dog / I don't have a dog) is correct; nicht einen is a calque from English and is marked down as an AO2 grammar error.
Practice questions for Negation (nicht, kein) and possessives (mein, dein, sein)
Which sentence correctly negates 'Ich spiele Gitarre' (I play the guitar)?
Which word correctly completes: 'Ich habe ___ Zeit.' (I have no time.)?