---
title: "Al, nog, pas, nog niet, niet meer"
level: A2
chapter: "Small words"
canonical: https://www.dutchfluency.com/grammar/al-nog-pas
updated: 2026-10-09
author: Dutch Fluency
license: CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/)
---

# Al, nog, pas, nog niet, niet meer

_Al_ means "already", _nog_ means "still", _nog niet_ means "not yet" and _niet meer_ means "no longer". _Pas_ means "only just" or "not until": _Ik ben pas om tien uur thuis_ means I won't be home until ten. _Al_ and _pas_ also often tell your listener whether a moment feels early or late to you.

## The pattern

> _Al_ and _nog_ say that something has started or is still going on; _nog niet_ and _niet meer_ say the opposite. _Pas_ says that something comes later, or is less, than you might expect.

- _al_: already. In questions it also means yet: _Ben je al thuis?_ (Are you home yet?)
- _nog_: still. (_Nog_ has other jobs too, like _nog een koffie_, one more coffee.)
- _nog niet_: not yet, the negative of _al_.
- _niet meer_: no longer, not anymore, the negative of _nog_.
- _pas_: not until with a time (_pas om tien uur_), only with an amount (_Joris is pas drie_), and only just or recently with the perfect tense (_pas verhuisd_).
- Where Dutch needs [_geen_ instead of _niet_](https://www.dutchfluency.com/grammar/geen-or-niet), you get _nog geen_ and _geen ... meer_: _Ik heb nog geen fiets. Er is geen melk meer._
- These words usually sit [in the middle of the sentence](https://www.dutchfluency.com/grammar/adverb-position), before a participle or words like _klaar_ and _thuis_: _Ik heb al gegeten._

## Examples

| Ik ben **al** klaar. | I'm already done. |
| Heb je **al** gegeten? | Have you eaten yet? |
| Hij slaapt **nog**. | He's still asleep. |
| Daan woont **nog** bij zijn ouders. | Daan still lives with his parents. |
| De trein is **nog niet** vertrokken. | The train hasn't left yet. |
| Sanne werkt **niet meer** bij de gemeente. | Sanne doesn't work for the municipality anymore. |
| Ik ben **pas** om tien uur thuis. | I won't be home until ten. |
| Fatima is **pas** verhuisd. | Fatima has only just moved house. |
| Het is **al** acht uur! | It's eight o'clock already! |
| Het is **pas** acht uur. | It's only eight o'clock. |

## Why it works this way

Picture a moment of change: the train leaves, the soup is ready, you move house. _Al_ and _nog niet_ ask whether that change has happened yet. _Nog_ and _niet meer_ ask whether the old situation is still going on. That is why they come in pairs:

- _Ben je al klaar?_ _Nee, nog niet._ (Are you done yet? No, not yet.)
- _Woon je nog in Utrecht?_ _Nee, niet meer._ (Do you still live in Utrecht? No, not anymore.)

Remember: when your answer is no, a question with _al_ gets _nog niet_, and a question with _nog_ gets _niet meer_. A yes answer simply keeps the same word: _Ja, ik woon nog in Utrecht._

Now the feeling. At eight in the morning, Emma can say _Het is al acht uur!_ (hurry, I'm late) or _Het is pas acht uur_ (relax, there's time). Same clock, different feeling. _Al_ often suggests that something happens sooner, or that a time or number is higher, than you expected; _pas_ suggests later or lower: _Ahmed is pas twintig en heeft al een eigen bedrijf._ (Ahmed is only twenty and already has his own business.)

English says "not ... until", but Dutch usually just uses _pas_, without _niet_: _De supermarkt gaat pas om acht uur open._ German speakers can map "schon, noch, erst" onto _al_, _nog_, _pas_, but should avoid _eerst_ here, because it means first. For Spanish speakers, "ya no" is _niet meer_.

## Watch out

- Not: _Ik heb gegeten al_ Say: _Ik heb al gegeten_ (_al_ goes before the participle, not at the end)
- Not: _Ik ben niet klaar nog_ Say: _Ik ben nog niet klaar_ (_nog_ comes before _niet_, and both go before _klaar_)
- Not: _Het is alleen negen uur_ Say: _Het is pas negen uur_ (_alleen_ means only in the sense of nothing else; for an early time, use _pas_)
- Not: _Ik heb nog niet kinderen_ Say: _Ik heb nog geen kinderen_ (before a noun like this, _niet_ becomes _geen_)

## Quick check

1. Choose _al_ or _nog niet_: _Bas heeft ... gegeten, dus hij heeft honger._
2. Choose _nog_ or _niet meer_: _Lotte rookt ..., want ze is vorig jaar gestopt._
3. Choose _al_ or _pas_. You want to say that the time feels early and there is no hurry: _Rustig maar, het is ... half zeven._
4. Fix the sentence: _Carlos woont niet in Den Haag meer._

## Answers

1. _nog niet_: he hasn't eaten yet, so he's hungry.
2. _niet meer_: she quit, so she no longer smokes.
3. _pas_: it makes half past six feel early (_al_ would make it feel late).
4. _Carlos woont niet meer in Den Haag._ (_niet meer_ goes before _in Den Haag_, not at the end.)

## Use it today

Tonight, tell someone at home or a colleague three true things in Dutch: something you have already done today, something you haven't done yet, and something you no longer do. For example: _Ik heb al boodschappen gedaan_, _Ik heb nog niet gekookt_, _Ik rook niet meer_.

## Questions learners ask

**What is the difference between al and pas in Dutch?**

Both can describe the same moment with a different feeling: al suggests sooner or more than you expected, and pas suggests later or less. "Het is al tien uur" means you should hurry; "Het is pas tien uur" means there is still time.

**How do you say "not yet" and "not anymore" in Dutch?**

"Not yet" is nog niet, as in "Ik ben nog niet klaar" (I'm not ready yet), and "not anymore" is niet meer, as in "Ik woon niet meer in Utrecht". With nouns that take geen, you say nog geen and geen ... meer.

**How do you say "not until" in Dutch?**

Dutch usually uses pas, without niet: "De winkel gaat pas om negen uur open" means the shop doesn't open until nine.

From the Dutch Fluency Grammar: https://www.dutchfluency.com/grammar. Shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.