DOUBLE NEGATIVES

DOUBLE NEGATIVES

Double negatives are two negative words used in the same sentence. Using two negatives turns the thought or sentence into a positive one. Most negative words are adjectives or adverbs.Only one negative word is needed to give a sentence a negative meeting. Putting in more than one is as sentence error called a double negative.

NEGATIVE WORDS

never/ nobody/ no one / not/ nowhere/ no/none/ nor/ nothing/ /neither /hardly/ scarcely/ rarely/ n’t

·   To correct a double negative, remove one of the negative words or change one to a positive.

CORRECTING DOUBLE NEGATIVES
Double Negative	Corrected Sentence
We can’t let nobody know about it	We can’t let anybody know about it/ We can let nobody know about it
I can’t find the dog nowhere	I can’t find the dog anywhere/ I can find the cat nowhere

a.   Double Negative Examples

1. That won't do you no good.

2. I ain't got no time for supper.

3. Nobody with any sense isn't going.

4. I can't find my keys nowhere.

5. She never goes with nobody.

6. John says he has not seen neither Alice nor Susan all day.

7. You can't see no one in this crowd.

8. There aren't no presents left to open.

9. The secret cave did not have none of the treasures they wanted.

10.    All the witnesses claimed that didn't see nothing.

11.    The pilot can't find no place to land.

 

b.   Double Negatives Using Prefixes

Sometimes a negative can be formed by attaching the prefixes ir-, in-, non- and un-. Here are some examples:

·             The evidence is certainly not irrefutable.

·             This gem is not uncommon.

·             The results are not inconclusive.

·             His rebuttal was clearly not nonsensical.

·             The price of the car is not insignificant.

·             It is not unnecessary to tell the truth all the time.

·             The new disease wasn't non-infectious.

·             He wasn't irresponsible about his duties.

 

c.   Double Negatives with Negative Words

You can create a double negative by using a negative word with a word that acts like a negative. Here are some examples:

·             Barely - I can't barely see where I am going in this fog.

·             Barely - She did not barely understand the instructions.

·             Hardly - I hardly have no money.

·             Hardly - It wasn't hardly midnight when we saw the meteor shower.

·             Rarely - He is not rarely a visitor at the park.

·             Scarcely - The news of the company's bankruptcy made scarcely no impact.

·             Scarcely - The Southeast had scarcely no rain last year.

·             Seldom - We don't watch movies seldom.