2015-08-21
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The word not can be used without an auxiliary immediately before a word to cancel what has just been said
See you Wednesday - (No), not Wednesday Thursday
Ask Diana (No), not Diana Ask her sister
I'II see you at 5 - (No), not at 5 Maybe at 5 30 We can also use nor to replace a negative imperative
Invite the Smiths but not the Robinsons (= but don't invite)
Beginning a sentence with a negative
Statements can begin with negative words like nothing or negative phrases with noffollowed by affirmative verbs [compare > 5.8 5.13]
Not many people enjoy washing up
He s written a lot of books but not all of them are novels
Nobody loves a bad loser
Nothing has happened here since you ve been away When a sentence begins with a negative adverb such as never the word order is affected [> 7.59.3]
Never has there been such an effort to save whales from extmctior
Negative questions and Yes/No short answers
Negative questions and Yes/No short answers
Form of negative questions
| foe[> 10.6] | negat Am Are Was | ive full form I not late? they not waiting? I not ill? | negative short form Aren't I late? Aren t they waiting? Wasn t I ill? | |
| have [> 10.27] | Have Has | I she | not finished? not left? | Haven't I finished? Hasn t she left? |
| do [> 10.41] does did | Do Does Did | you it you | not like it? not work? not paint it? | Don't you like it? Doesn't it work? Didn't you paint it? |
| modals [> 11.5] | Can | I | not see him? | Can't I see him? |
Notes on the form of negative questions
In negative Yes/No questions there is a difference in word order between the full form and the short form
full form Did he not invite you out? {not comes after the subject) short form Didn't he invite you out? (auxiliary + n t before verb)
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Sometimes the subject may be repeated at the end especially in everyday conversation, when we want to make it quite clear who or what we are referring to [compare > 13.3.3n4] Aren't they a nuisance these roadworks?
