Difference between nothing and anything

[mokhtar]

English Grammar Tests, Elementary Level

ESL/EFL Test #76 "Anything/nothing/something/everything", question 7

If there is ......... you need you can call me, okay?

(a) anything
(b) any
(c) nothing
(d) everything

English Grammar Tests, Elementary Level

ESL/EFL Test #76 "Anything/nothing/something/everything", answer 7

If there is anything you need you can call me, okay?

Correct answer: (a) anything

Your answer was: incorrect
If there is nothing you need you can call me, okay?
_________________________

what is the difference between nothing and anything?

mokhtar

[Alan]

Hi Mokhtar,

Anything is usually used in questions and negative sentences as:

Have you anything to say?

I haven't anything to say/I have nothing to say.

Not anything means the same as nothing.

In the sentence in the test:

If there is anything you need, you can call me

anything makes better sense logically because the use of nothing would make the offer to help (if there is anything you need) meaningless.

Alan
_________________
English as a Second Language
You can read my ESL story Subjunctive