{"id":3925,"date":"2015-03-26T22:30:01","date_gmt":"2015-03-26T22:30:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.eoisabi.org\/?p=3925"},"modified":"2020-04-27T19:53:06","modified_gmt":"2020-04-27T19:53:06","slug":"negation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/englishroam.com\/?p=3925","title":{"rendered":"Negation"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u2663 \u00a0Negation \u21d0<\/a><\/strong>(like asking) is one of the most difficult <\/strong>areas of English<\/p>\n

\u2022\u2192\u00a0Double Negatives<\/a>\u21d0<\/strong>[a feature of Spaniards and Blacks]<\/p>\n

\u2207 \u00a0\u00a0Transferred Negation<\/strong><\/h5>\n

When we express negative ideas with verbs like think, believe…\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0we prefer to make the first verb negative instead of the second. We shift or transfer the negative from the second verb to the first. Take, for example, the following statement:<\/p>\n

* I think John isn’t<\/span> coming to the party.<\/em><\/p>\n

Although grammatically ‘correct’, this sentence\u00a0sounds strange to native speakers. We prefer to move (shift or transfer) the negative to the preceding verb:<\/p>\n

I don’t<\/strong> think<\/span> John is coming to the party.<\/em><\/p>\n

Verbs used like this include believe, expect, seem, suppose, think<\/strong>,<\/span> and want<\/span><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Study the following examples:<\/p>\n

\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
We usually say:<\/td>\nWe do NOT<\/span> usually say:<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
I don’t think<\/span><\/strong> he’s coming.<\/td>\nI think he’s not coming.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
I don’t believe<\/span><\/strong> he’s coming.<\/td>\nI believe he’s not coming.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
I don’t suppose<\/span><\/strong> he’s coming.<\/td>\nI suppose he’s not coming.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
I don’t want<\/span><\/strong> him to come.<\/td>\nI want him not to come.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
I don’t expect<\/span><\/strong> him to come.<\/td>\nI expect him not to come.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
He doesn’t seem<\/span><\/strong> to like it.<\/td>\nHe seems not to like it.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n

\u00a4 \u00a0Exceptions to negative raising<\/p>\n

\u00b7 Surprise is often expressed without shifting the negative:
\nI thought you’d never<\/span> get here on time!<\/em><\/p>\n

\u00b7 Negative raising is not used with hope<\/span>:<\/p>\n

I hope he doesn’t<\/span> come.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u00b7 Negative raising is preferred in informal style with verbs that are followed by an infinitive:<\/p>\n

He doesn’t<\/span> seem to understand.<\/em>
\nI don’t<\/span> expect to be back before Monday.<\/em>
\nI don’t<\/span> want to miss the concert tonight.<\/em><\/p>\n

\"no_\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\u21d2‘no’, ‘none’ … ‘nobody’\/’no-one’, ‘nothing’, ‘nowhere’<\/a>\u21d0<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u2297\u2192 Negative\u00a0expressions with ‘It’s…’ & \u00abThere’s…\u00bb<\/a>\u21d0[quiz]<\/h6>\n

\u2022 It\u2019s no use… \/ It\u2019s no good…<\/strong><\/span>
\nThere\u2019s nothing you can do about the situation, so it\u2019s no use worrying<\/strong> about it.<\/span>
\nIt\u2019s no good trying<\/strong> to persuade me. You won\u2019t succeed.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u2022 There\u2019s no point in…<\/strong><\/span>
\nThere\u2019s no point in having<\/strong> a car if you never use it.<\/span>
\nThere was no point in waiting<\/strong> any longer, so we went.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u2022 There\u2019s no harm in…<\/strong><\/span>
\nThere’s no harm in asking<\/strong>.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u2022 It\u2019s (not) worth…<\/strong><\/span>
\nI live only a short walk from here, so it\u2019s not worth taking<\/strong> a taxi.<\/span>
\nOur \ufb02ight was very early in the morning, so it wasn\u2019t worth going<\/strong> to bed.<\/span><\/p>\n

All those expressions are followed by -ing forms.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u03a6 \u00a0There are other \u00abno\u00bb phrases which are followed by to-infinitive<\/strong>:\"nope\"<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

There’s no need to\u00a0<\/strong>pay in advance.<\/span><\/address>\n
There’s no reason to<\/strong>\u00a0worry.<\/span><\/address>\n

\u03a6 \u00a0And others are followed by a that-clause<\/strong>:<\/span><\/p>\n

It’s no wonder that<\/strong>\u00a0we didn’t get a rise.<\/span><\/address>\n
There’s no doubt \u00a0that<\/strong> the world is getting warmer.<\/span><\/address>\n
There’s no denying that\u00a0<\/strong>sharks have an image problem.<\/span>\u00a0<\/address>\n

\u2022\u2192http:\/\/grammar-teacher.com\/no<\/strong>-idioms<\/a>\/\u21d0<\/p>\n

\u03a6 \u00a0The expression \u00abNo matter…<\/strong>\u00ab<\/em> is actually a conjunction (i.e.: joins two clauses together) frequently followed by wh-<\/strong> words:<\/span><\/p>\n

No matter where<\/strong> you go, you’ll find Coca-Cola.<\/span><\/address>\n
Phone me when you get home, no matter how<\/strong> late it is.<\/span><\/address>\n
No matter when<\/strong> you come, you’ll be welcome.<\/span><\/address>\n
\u00a0<\/address>\n
\"negativeQ\"<\/a><\/address>\n

\u21d1 Click for some examples of use of negative questions<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

We tend to avoid\u00a0using such questions in the past<\/strong> as they may often sound rather aggressive, much the same as a reproach<\/strong> (=\u00abYou should have known better..<\/em>.\u00bb):<\/p>\n

\u00abWhy didn’t you tell me?\u00bb \u00a0 (=\u00bbYou might have told me!\u00bb)<\/em><\/p>\n

\u00abDidn’t you realise it was dangerous?\u00bb \u00a0 \u00a0(=\u00bbYou could have realised…\u00bb)<\/em><\/p>\n

\u221e\u00a0 \u00a0Negative Agreement:\u00a0 ‘either’ – ‘neither’<\/a> \u21d0<\/h6>\n

\u2666\u00a0Turning down a request, an invitation, an offer\u2026\u00a0\u21d3<\/strong><\/p>\n