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I am trying to understand the dialogue 5:03 in [this tutorial
video](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=euKqlJWhQXE&list=PLB3F2C5D8B5F81F34).
What I'm hearing is this:

> なにがいますか。
>
> なにもいませんね。
>
> あれ。ねこがいますよ。
>
> え、どこに？
>
> あそこにいますよ。

The lesson is about how to say that something is somewhere and the differences
between います/あります。 So the video goes on to explain the last three sentences.

The first sentence, I think, means something like: "Who's/what's there?".
However, I don't understand that the second means. I know も is used for
"also", so all I came up with was the nonsensical

What too isn't there, is there?

Please help :)
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2013-10-07T19:03:44.837
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2013-10-11T01:25:10.977
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question
meaning
What does 何もいません mean?
This means "There isn't anything" or "Nothing is there", where
"nothing/anything" has to be an animal or something living due to the use of
`います`. It's worth noting that it is **NOT** a "who", since both question and
answer use `なに` instead of `だれ`.

You are correct that `も` is used for "also". But it is used as a "negation"
particle in the pattern `〜も〜ません`. Here are some examples.

>   * なにもいません／ありません → There is nothing (living/non-living) (there).
>   * だれも来【き】ません → No one will come
>   * なにもしませんでした → I didn't do anything
>   * どこにもいきませんでした → He didn't go anywhere
>
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2013-10-07T19:19:25.870
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answer
This use of the `も` expresses _completeness or totality_ , like the English
word _all_. And in particular, when it's attached to an _indefinite
demonstrative_ (なに, どこ, どれ, だれ, どなた, and so on), it causes that word to refer
to a **complete set** of the type denoted by the demonstrative:

```

    　　だれ　　　who
    　　だれも　　everyone   (with positive verb)
    　　だれも　　no one     (with negative verb)
    
```

The same thing happens when you add も to other words like this:

```

    　　どこ　　　where
    　　どこも　　everywhere (with positive verb)
    　　どこも　　nowhere    (with negative verb)
```

```

    　　どれ　　　which
    　　どれも　　all        (with positive verb)
    　　どれも　　none       (with negative verb)
    
```

But なに is an exception. It doesn't usually appear in positive sentences:

```

    　　なに　　　what
    　　~~なにも　　everything (with positive verb)~~
    　　なにも　　nothing    (with negative verb)
```

So let's make things easier to understand by starting with an example that's
**not** an exception. We'll use だれ, which means _who_ , and we'll add も to
that to make _everyone_. Here it is with a positive verb:

> [ **だれも** ] が 知っています【しっています】  
>  [ **everyone** ] knows

And now, with a negative verb:

> [ **だれも** ] いません。  
>  [ **no one** ] is here.

Why does the meaning change with a negative verb? Well, it doesn't really. The
example above literally means " **Everyone** is not here", but the usual way
to say that in English is with the logically equivalent " **No one** is here".

Okay, so now let's try a sentence with **なにも**. Like I said before, this is an
exception, so we'll skip making a positive sentence and go straight to the
negative:

> [ **なにも** ] ありません。  
>  [ **nothing** ] is there.

This literally means " **Everything** is not there". But again, that's not how
we usually say it in English, so we translate it instead to the logically
equivalent " **Nothing** is there". And your sentence is the same, except that
it uses います (animate existence) rather than あります (inanimate existence).
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2013-10-07T22:44:11.480
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answer