NEGATIVE SENTENCES

Negative sentences in English: Rules, examples, and an easy guide for learners

In English, we can make a positive sentence (sometimes called an affirmative sentence) to say that something is true or a negative sentence to say that something is not true or does not happen. For example:

• Positive: She is at home. (This is true.)
• Negative: She is not at home. (This is not true.)

Many English learners find it hard to make negative sentences correctly, especially with verbs, pronouns, or longer sentences. It can be confusing!

This page covers everything you need to know about negative sentences in English. We talk about how to use 'not' with normal verbs, auxiliary verbs, and short forms. We'll also talk about how to use determiners, adverbs and pronouns to make a sentence negative. You'll get clear rules and lots of examples.

What is a negative sentence?

A negative sentence tells us that something is not true, doesn't happen, or doesn't exist. In English, we usually make negative sentences with 'not'.

• I am not tired.
• She will not go out tonight.
• The children have not arrived yet.

We also make sentences with a negative meaning using words like no, none, nothing, nobody, nowhere, never, rarely, not once, not only but also, under no circumstances, not any more, and not any longer.

• We bought none of the tickets.
• Nothing happened at the meeting.
• Never have I seen such a beautiful view.

How to form a negative sentence

We usually make a negative sentence by adding 'not' after the auxiliary verb. With the present simple and past simple, we add the auxiliary verbs 'do / does / did'.

Contractions in negative sentences

We almost always use these contractions when we're speaking or writing. We only use the full forms in very formal situations. Where there are two possible short forms, you can choose either. 'She's not going' is exactly the same as 'she isn't going'.

Negative sentences using different auxiliary verbs

How to make negative questions

With normal yes / no questions, we put the auxiliary verb at the start.

• Do you want coffee?
• Have you done your homework?

When we ask negative questions, we need to include 'not' (or, more usually, 'n't'). We can use them to show that we are surprised by something, and we want to check that it's true.

• Don't you want coffee? (= I'm surprised that you don't want coffee, so I'm checking that you really don't want any.)
• Haven't you done your homework? (= I'm surprised that you maybe haven't done it.)

Negative questions are easy to make. You just add 'n't' after the auxiliary verb at the beginning of the question. We can make them in any tense.

Negatives with modal verbs

We make negative modal verbs by adding 'not' directly after the modal. For short forms, we use 'n't'. 'May' and 'might' don't have short forms.

• Positive: You should try.
• Negative: You should not try. / You shouldn't try.

Common negative words and phrases

We can also make the meaning of sentence negative by using negative words and phrases instead of 'not'. Here are some words we use in this way.

No and none

Words like 'no', 'none', and 'not.any' help us show that nothing exists, or that we don't have a single one of something.

'No' is a determiner and it goes before a noun to say we don't have something. It is stronger than 'not any'. We use it in grammatically positive sentences.

• There is no chocolate left. (= There isn't any chocolate left.)
• She has no friends in this city. (= She doesn't have any friends.)

We can't use 'no' alone - it always comes before a noun. If there isn't a noun, we must use 'none'. 'None' is a pronoun and it replaces the subject or the object of the verb. When we use 'none', it makes the meaning quite strong.

• There is none left.
• Friends? She has none.

'No' and 'none' are the equivalent of using 'any' with negative verbs that include 'not'.

• He doesn't read any books.
• She doesn't have any time today.

Let's compare how they work:

• Negative sentence: I didn't buy any.
• Grammatically positive sentence, but with a negative meaning: I bought none.
• Negative sentence: She doesn't like any vegetables.
• Grammatically positive sentence, but with a negative meaning: She likes no vegetables.

We can't use 'not' and 'no' or 'none' together in standard English. This is called a 'double negative' and isn't correct.

• NOT: I didn't buy none.
• NOT: She doesn't like no vegetables.

Nothing, nobody, nowhere, no one

We use the pronouns 'nothing', 'nobody', 'nowhere and 'no one' with positive verbs, because they already have a negative meaning.

• She wants nothing to eat.
• I saw nobody there.
• They went nowhere last weekend.

These are the equivalent of using 'anything', 'anybody', 'anyone' and 'anywhere' in negative sentences with 'not'.

• She doesn't want anything to eat.
• I don't know anybody who's coming.
• She doesn't want to go anywhere.

Again, we can't use 'not' and 'nothing' or 'nowhere' or 'nobody' together in standard English. This is called a 'double negative' and isn't correct.

• NOT: I didn't go nowhere.
• NOT: She doesn't like nothing.

'No more' and 'no longer' are stronger alternatives to 'not ... any more / any longer'. These adverbs show that something has stopped or isn't true now and tend to be used with the present tense. 'No longer' is quite formal.

• I no longer go there.
• There is no more milk in the fridge.

No more and no longer are a stronger equivalent to using 'not ... any more' and 'not ... any longer'.

• I don't go there any longer.
• There isn't any more milk in the fridge.

Again, it's not correct in standard English to use 'not' with 'no longer' or 'no more'.

• NOT: I don't go there no longer.
• NOT: There isn't no more milk in the fridge.

These are some more expressions with 'no'. We can also use these with 'any' in a negative sentence with 'not'.

• I am in no way responsible for that mistake.
• I was at no time aware of the problem.
• You must leave early on no account.
• You should open that door under no circumstances.

With 'any':

• I'm not in any way responsible for that mistake.
• I wasn't aware of the problem at any time.
• You mustn't leave early on any account.
• You shouldn't open the door under any circumstances.

We also use these words to make the meaning of a sentence negative.

• I have never seen such a beautiful view.
• I seldom eat fast food.
• She rarely goes to parties.
• He hardly noticed the change.
• They had scarcely arrived when they left again.
• You've barely eaten.

Finally, we can make negatives stronger by using words that emphasise that there is 'absolutely none' or 'absolutely nothing' of something.

This usually goes either after the negative word mid-sentence, or at the end of the sentence.

• We were not at all interested. (We were absolutely not interested.)
• We were not interested at all. (We were absolutely not interested.)

This usually goes after a noun, at the end of a sentence.

• We have no idea whatsoever. (This means 'we have absolutely no idea'.)
• There is no food whatsoever. (This means we have 'we have absolutely no food'.)

This usually goes after the adjective, at the end of a sentence.

• I'm not tired in the slightest. (I'm not a little bit tired.)
• She wasn't worried in the slightest. (She wasn't a little bit worried.)

Inversion in negative sentences

Sometimes when we use a negative adverb like 'never' or 'seldom', we use inversion to make the sentence more formal or make the meaning stronger. This means we put the negative word at the beginning of the sentence, and then the auxiliary verb and then the subject.

• Never have I seen such a beautiful view. (This is stronger and more formal than 'I have never seen such a beautiful view')
• Seldom do I eat fast food. (This is stronger and more formal than 'I seldom eat fast food'.)

Using conjunctions in negative sentences

We can use conjunctions to connect negative ideas or show contrast between a negative and positive idea.

We can use 'nor' to connect two negative ideas. When we use 'nor', the auxiliary verb comes before the subject. This is another example of inversion after a negative word. In this case, both parts of the sentence have a negative meaning.

• She didn't answer the phone, nor did she reply to the email. (The auxiliary 'did' comes before the subject 'she'.)
• I don't like coffee, nor do I like tea. ('Do' comes before the subject 'I'.)

'Neither ... nor' connects two things (nouns, verbs, adjectives, or clauses) and shows that both are negative.

• She likes neither tea nor coffee. (two nouns)
• The film was neither interesting nor funny. (two adjectives)
• He will neither attend the meeting nor will he submit the report. (two clauses)

This makes the sentence stronger. It's grammatically negative because it includes 'not', but actually it empahsises that both of the ideas are true.

• I'm not only tired, but also hungry.

We often use 'either' or 'neither' to talk about two options in a negative way.

'Either' is used in negative sentences with 'not' when there are two specific options and both are not true.

• I don't want either meal! (There are two meals, and I don't want the first or the second.)
• She didn't like either option. (She didn't like the first or the second option.)
• He hasn't visited either school. (He hasn't visited the first school or the second.)

'Neither' is used without 'not' when there are two specific options and both are not true.

• Neither meal is good. (Both meals are not good.)
• She liked neither option. (She didn't like the first option or the second.)
• Neither school has a library. (Both schools do not have a library.)

Negative short responses

When someone says a negative sentence, sometimes we want to agree with the negative. We can use 'neither' to mean 'also not'.

We put 'neither' first, then the verb, and then the subject. The subject can be a noun or a pronoun.

• A: I'm not from New York. B: Neither am I (= I am also not from New York).
• A: I don't like spicy food. B: Neither do I. (= I also don't like spicy food)
• A: She doesn't watch horror movies. B: Neither does he. (= He also doesn't watch horror movies)

We often use 'so' and 'not' to answer positive or negative statements without repeating the full sentence.

We use 'so' to agree with a positive statement.

• A: Has he already left?
• B: I hope so. (positive answer)

We use 'not' to agree with a negative statement or give a negative answer.

• A: Did he manage?
• B: I guess not. (negative answer)

Double negatives: What to avoid

In English, we don't usually use two negatives together. If we use 'not' to make the verb negative, the pronoun or determiner should be positive.

• She doesn't know anybody.

Here, 'doesn't know' is a negative verb with 'not', so we use 'anybody'.

• NOT: She doesn't know nobody.

'Nobody' is already negative so this is a double negative and isn't correct.

• They don't want anything to eat.

Here, 'don't want' is a negative verb with 'not', so we use 'anything'.

• NOT: They don't want nothing to eat.

'Nothing' is already negative so this is a double negative and isn't correct.

Double negatives are not grammatically correct in standard English. However, in some dialects and in informal speech, native speakers sometimes use them. It's best to avoid them in formal or professional situations.

More common mistakes to avoid

Even advanced learners sometimes make mistakes with negatives. Here are the most common ones to look out for.

• I didn't went. (not correct)
• I didn't go. (correct)

Remember: After 'didn't', the verb must be in the base form, not the past simple.

• He not like pizza. (not correct)
• He doesn't like pizza. (correct)

Remember: In the simple present and the simple past, with all verbs except 'be', we need to add an auxiliary verb (do/does/did) for negatives.

• I didn't hungry. (not correct)
• I wasn't hungry. (correct)

Remember: With the past simple of'be', we use 'wasn't' or 'weren't' alone. We don't need 'didn't'.

• He mustn't to go. (not correct)
• He mustn't go. (correct)

Remember: After modals (must, can, will, should), we use the base form, without 'to'.

• She doesn't likes reading. (not correct)
• She doesn't like reading. (correct)

Remember: The '-s' is already in 'doesn't', so the main verb desn't need it.

• A: I'm not tired. B: Neither I am. (not correct)
• A: I'm not tired. B: Neither am I. (correct)

Remember: The verb comes before the subject after 'neither'.

• I have any friends here.
• I don't have any friends here. / I have some friends here.

Remember: 'Any' is usually used with negatives, not positive sentences.

Conclusion

Important things to remember

A negative sentence tells us something is not true or that something doesn't happen.

We usually form negatives by adding 'not' (or a contraction with the auxiliary: don't, isn't, can't, won't).

We use negative questions when we're surprised that something isn't true.

We can use other words apart from 'not' to express a negative meaning. Some of these words need inversion.

• No, none, any
• Nothing, nobody, nowhere
• No more, no longer
• Never, seldom, rarely, under no circumstances, on no account
• Nor, neither