Negation: Making Negative Statements
Negation changes a positive statement into a negative one.
Negation with Auxiliary Verbs
Add not after the auxiliary verb:
| Positive | Negative |
|---|---|
| She is working. | She is not working. |
| They have finished. | They have not finished. |
| He can swim. | He can not swim. |
| We will go. | We will not go. |
Negation with “Do/Does/Did”
When there’s no auxiliary, use do not / does not / did not:
| Positive | Negative |
|---|---|
| I like coffee. | I do not like coffee. |
| She works here. | She does not work here. |
| They went home. | They did not go home. |
Note: Main verb returns to base form:
- She works → She does not work
- They went → They did not go
Negation with “Be”
Add not after “be”:
| Positive | Negative |
|---|---|
| I am happy. | I am not happy. |
| She is a doctor. | She is not a doctor. |
| They are ready. | They are not ready. |
| He was late. | He was not late. |
Contractions
In spoken and informal written English:
| Full Form | Contraction |
|---|---|
| is not | isn’t |
| are not | aren’t |
| was not | wasn’t |
| were not | weren’t |
| have not | haven’t |
| has not | hasn’t |
| had not | hadn’t |
| do not | don’t |
| does not | doesn’t |
| did not | didn’t |
| will not | won’t |
| would not | wouldn’t |
| can not | can’t |
| could not | couldn’t |
| should not | shouldn’t |
| must not | mustn’t |
Examples:
- I don’t like coffee.
- She isn’t coming.
- They haven’t finished.
- He won’t be late.
Other Negative Words
No, None, Nothing, Nobody, Nowhere, Never
- I have no money.
- None of them came.
- Nothing happened.
- Nobody knows.
- I found it nowhere.
- I never drink coffee.
Neither, Nor
- Neither answer is correct.
- I don’t like it, nor does she.
Double Negatives
In standard English, avoid using two negatives in one clause:
| Incorrect | Correct |
|---|---|
| I don’t have any money. | |
| She didn’t see anybody. | |
| We can’t go anywhere. | |
| I never said anything. |
Rule: Use “any” words with “not”:
- not + anything (not
nothing) - not + anybody (not
nobody) - not + anywhere (not
nowhere)
Negative Questions
- Don’t you like it?
- Isn’t she coming?
- Haven’t you finished yet?
English uses single negation: one negative word per clause is enough. I don’t know nothing (double negative) is non-standard in formal English; say I don’t know anything or I know nothing.