Unstressed ‘Any’
Grammatically speaking, ‘any’ is a quantifier which means that it informs us about the quantity of a noun or noun phrase. It can be used with both countable and uncountable nouns.
- There aren’t any people in the room.
- There isn’t any sugar in the bowl.
We use ‘any’ only with negative and interrogative verb forms.
- There aren’t any toys in the box
- Are there any toys in the box?
We do not use ‘any’ with affirmative verb forms.
- There are
anysome / no toys in the box.
Stressed ‘Any’
When the word ‘any’ is stressed, it can mean unlimited quantity.
- He doesn’t drink any wine. (he dislikes all wines)
- You can choose any film. (the choice is unlimited)
No
In affirmative sentences we can use ‘some’ to indicate a positive quantity or ‘no’ to indicate a zero quantity.
- There are some cars on the road.
- There is some coffee in the pot.
- There are no good programmes on TV.
- There is no milk in the fridge.
So, when talking about a lack of something, a zero quantity, we can use ‘any’ with negative sentences while we use ‘no’ with positive sentences.
- There wasn’t any bread in the bakers.
- There was no bread in the bakers.
This is because in English (unlike in Spanish) you cannot have a double negative.
- There
wasn’t nobread
Common error
- I have
anytime.
In affirmative sentences you must use either: not … any or no.
- I haven’t got any time or I have no time.