Simple negations in English reverse the meaning of a sentence, turning an affirmative statement into a negative one. This is typically done by using negative words such as not, no, never, or by using negative forms of verbs with auxiliaries or main verbs.
- Negation changes a sentence from positive to negative.
- Common negation words include not, no, never.
- Negation is formed differently for auxiliaries and main verbs.
Basic Negation with "Not"
The most common way to make a sentence negative is to add not after the auxiliary verb.
| Positive | Negative |
|---|---|
| She is happy. | She is not happy. |
| They can swim. | They cannot (can't) swim. |
| He will come. | He will not (won't) come. |
- Use not after auxiliary verbs: am/is/are, can, will, have (as auxiliary).
- Not makes the meaning opposite.
Negation with "Do" in Simple Present and Past
When there is no auxiliary verb, use do/does not (for present) or did not (for past) with the main verb.
| Positive | Negative (Present) | Negative (Past) |
|---|---|---|
| You work. | You do not (don't) work. | You did not (didn't) work. |
| She likes coffee. | She does not (doesn't) like coffee. | She did not (didn't) like coffee. |
- Use do not/does not + base verb for present tense negation.
- Use did not + base verb for past tense negation.
- Does not for he/she/it; do not for I/you/we/they.
Negatives Without Verbs: "No" and "Never"
- No is used before nouns to negate: "No money," "No dogs allowed."
- Never means "not ever" and is used with verbs: "I never eat out."
For main verbs without auxiliaries in the present tense, use 'do not' (or 'don't') for subjects I/you/we/they, and 'does not' (or 'doesn't') for he/she/it, followed by the base verb.
'not', 'no', and 'never' are common negation words.
For past tense negation with main verbs, use 'did not' plus the base form of the verb.
'do not/does not' is used for negating main verbs in the present tense when there is no auxiliary.
'No' is not used to negate verbs directly; it's used before nouns or noun phrases.
Correct negations are 'She does not like chocolate' (present) and 'She didn't like chocolate' (past).
Conclusion
Simple negations use "not," "do not/does not," and "did not" to turn positive sentences into negatives, depending on the verb and tense.
- Add "not" after auxiliaries: is → is not; can → cannot.
- Use "do not/does not" for main verbs (present): I work → I do not work.
- Use "did not" for all subjects in the past: I worked → I did not work.
Use 'do' or 'does' with the main verb for negation in the present tense when there's no auxiliary.
'They do not play tennis' for present; 'They did not play tennis' for past.
Correct: 'She is not ready.', 'You will not fail.', 'We have not seen it.'