2

Like some others, at the checkout of a local store the cashier asked me:

Do you need a bag?

As I already had my own, I answered "No, thanks." However, I would like to be a bit more talkative next time, but I don't know with which word to fill in the blank in following sentence:

No, I don't need bag, thank you!

I don't know if it's a bag, no bag, any bag ...

Community
  • 1
ebosi
  • 575
  • 1
  • 7
  • 17

1 Answers1

1

The correct phrase here is "no, I don't need a bag."

"I don't need no bag" is something you might hear sometimes -- double negatives ("do not need no bag") are technically incorrect, but used by many native speakers anyway.

"I don't need any bags" means exactly the same thing (in this context) as "I don't need a bag," and is the most obvious answer had the cashier asked "do you need any bags?"

"I don't need any bag" means something slightly different. It's grammatically correct, and would be understood fine, but it actually implies that you don't need bags in general. Saying "I don't need any bag" implies that you don't need a bag ever, in all of life.

Eric Dand
  • 158
  • 4
  • Wikipedia says double negatives are grammatical. And the OP also asks about the contruction of any bag but you don't mention it. – Mohd Zulkanien Sarbini Mar 17 '17 at 02:20
  • Double negatives are grammatical, but mean something new: "don't need no bag" technically means that you do need a bag, but most people use it to mean the opposite. Thanks for the note about "any"; I'll edit the answer. – Eric Dand Mar 17 '17 at 02:21
  • What about "the (offered) bag". Does that only work with the adjective? – Hector von Mar 17 '17 at 02:21
  • 1
    @Hectorvon: Are you asking if "I don't need the bag" is OK? If so, then yes, that's also fine. Less natural, but totally fine. – Eric Dand Mar 17 '17 at 02:27
  • I'm thinking it would have an inconsiderate undertone, because the can be used to denote a class of things, as in "no need to ask me that, ever". But with the adjective it's obviously fine, so I wondered about the difference. I take it, omission the adjective is one common reading. – Hector von Mar 17 '17 at 04:15
  • @user178049 Where does Wikipedia say double negatives are grammatical? In standard English, they are definitely not. – stangdon Mar 17 '17 at 11:50
  • @stangdon It says in the first sentence. Yes, I agree it's unacceptable in a standard English. But it shouldn't be forbidden in informal context, especially for a literary purpose, "We don't need no education" for example. – Mohd Zulkanien Sarbini Mar 17 '17 at 12:26
  • @user178049 - It says it's a grammatical construction, meaning "This is a construction in grammar", not "This usage is grammatical in the English language." The Wikipedia entry on double negatives discusses it as a general concept in many languages, not just in English. – stangdon Mar 18 '17 at 14:51