What does the word negative mean


Asked by: Leif Wisozk

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(2) : denoting the absence or the contradictory of something nontoxic is a negative term. (3) : expressing negation negative particles such as no and not. c : adverse, unfavorable the reviews were mostly negative. 2a : lacking positive qualities especially : disagreeable a colorless negative personality.

What does the word negative mean above?

negative. / (ˈnɛɡətɪv) / adjective. expressing or meaning a refusal or deniala negative answer. lacking positive or affirmative qualities, such as enthusiasm, interest, or optimism.

What is the definition of being negative?

Here is a definition of negativity from the web dictionary: “Negativity is a tendency to be downbeat, disagreeable, and skeptical. It’s a pessimistic attitude that always expects the worst. Negative outcomes are bad outcomes like losing a game, getting a disease, suffering an injury, or getting something stolen.”

What is a better word for negative?

To contradict; to withsay; to deny. … In this page you can discover 106 synonyms, antonyms, idiomatic expressions, and related words for negative, like: cynical, negativism, detrimental, contradictory, nullifying, pessimistic, disavowal, abrogating, cool, electronegative and double-negative.

What is a negative example?

A negative is defined as a person or thing that refuses or denies, or is undesirable, unwanted or disliked. An example of a negative is the «no» response given by a person. An example of a negative is a cab driver who gets lost all the time.

35 related questions found

Is couldn’t a negative word?

Both «couldn’t» and «hardly» are negatives. Try instead, «I could hardly wait» or «I couldn’t wait.» Both «did not» and «barely» are negative.

How do you use the word negative?

  1. [S] [T] You’re so negative. ( CK)
  2. [S] [T] Don’t be so negative. ( CK)
  3. [S] [T] Tom’s blood type is O negative. ( CK)
  4. [S] [T] Why does Tom have such a negative attitude? ( …
  5. [S] [T] His reply was negative. ( …
  6. [S] [T] The results were negative. ( …
  7. [S] [T] Tom replied in the negative. ( …
  8. [S] [T] Why are you being so negative? (

Who is negative person?

Those who are negative are likely to be over sensitive to criticism, even taking compliments the wrong way. They interpret innocent remarks as being condescending or rude. For example, a negative person may find jokes about short people offensive because they are not very tall themselves.

What are the negative traits of a person?

The list of bad human traits is long. It includes: arrogance, deception, delusion, dishonesty, ego, envy, greed, hatred, immorality, lying, selfishness, unreliability, violence, etc.

Why am I such a negative person?

Negative thoughts can also occur because of stress. According to WebMD, people who are stressed experience «constant worrying» and «being pessimistic or only seeing the negative side.» Other symptoms of stress include racing thoughts, inability to concentrate, poor judgment, insomnia and headaches.

What are the negative attitudes of a person?

You may want to describe a person’s negativity or the negative attitude of a character in a book.

  • Aggressive.
  • Arrogant.
  • Belligerent.
  • Bigoted.
  • Blunt.
  • Callous.
  • Critical.
  • Cynical.

What is negative language?

Negative language is non-communication.

If you don’t like something, can’t understand something, don’t want to do something, the listener, employee, or leader is at a loss to understand what you’re talking about. “I wouldn’t do it that way.” Well, that’s helpful!

What is the meaning of negative side?

adj. 1 expressing or meaning a refusal or denial. a negative answer. 2 lacking positive or affirmative qualities, such as enthusiasm, interest, or optimism. 3 showing or tending towards opposition or resistance.

What makes a word negative?

A negative is a word or phrase that shows you reject or disagree with something. … Words like never and nobody are negatives too—they just express disagreement in a different way.

What is not a bad double negative?

In practice, though, “not bad” is usually a way of saying “quite good.” This double negative is therefore a form of ironic understatement, sometimes known as litotes.

Is Cannot a double negative?

A double negative is usually created by combining the negative form of a verb (e.g., cannot, did not, have not) with a negative pronoun (e.g., nothing, nobody), a negative adverb (e.g., never, hardly), or a negative conjunction (e.g., neither/nor). My daughter Chantelle wouldn’t shout at nobody.

Why is double negative bad?

Using two negatives usually turns the thought or sentence into a positive one. Double negatives are generally discouraged in English because they are considered to be poor grammar and they can be confusing.

Is negative a good thing?

While positive emotions such as gratitude, happiness, and love make life worth living, a dash of negativity can be a helpful spice in the recipe for a good life. So accentuate the positive, but don’t eliminate the negative.

What is the negative attitude?

Negative attitudes are punished to discourage the same action in the future. If we think positive thoughts we will surely experience such emotions as joy, love, gratitude, peace, and hope. If we think negative thoughts we will have negative feelings such as anger, disappointment, irritation, envy, etc.

What is the negative thought?

Negative thoughts are thoughts that cause us to slip, lose hope or that stand in the way of improving your health. A negative thought is usually a criticism of oneself. Type of Negative Thought.

What is an example of negative language?

For example: «We can’t do that» becomes «That’s going to be a problem, but here’s what we CAN do instead.» «We can’t start until we get requirements» becomes «Please give us the requirements so we can start.» «We can’t help you unless you log off» becomes «Please log off so we can help you.»

What are 3 examples of negative communication?

There are three main types of negative communication: passive, aggressive and passive aggressive. Few people exhibit these patterns in the extreme – those who do have significant psychopathology. But chances are, you and others around you occasionally slip into some negative behaviours.

What is negative slant language?

adj. 1 expressing or meaning a refusal or denial. a negative answer. 2 lacking positive or affirmative qualities, such as enthusiasm, interest, or optimism. 3 showing or tending towards opposition or resistance.

What do you call someone that is always negative?

The word is pessimist, a person who expects the worst. Mr X is a pessimist.

What do you call someone who is constantly negative?

curmudgeon /kərˈməjən/ noun A bad-tempered or surly person. … (pejorative, informal) A person who is considered excessively and disagreeably pessimistic. A less aggressive synonym, similar to Benjamin’s answer.

Источник

I think an occasional rest-day is as necessary to the tired brain as the photographer’s dark room is to the development of the negative impression — without it the brain would, indeed, record a «_negative impression_.» ❋ Various (N/A)

And the nearer such part or section may be to the negative pole in the positive post, so much the more _negative_ it will be. ❋ Daniel Clark (N/A)

Its negative pole is the _negative electrode_ in contact with the positive end or pole of magnet No. 2, and its positive pole is the _wire end of the cord_ in the negative post. ❋ Daniel Clark (N/A)

So it is still true that on the negative half of the circuit, the _negative_ qualities _diminish_ as we advance towards the central point just as on the positive half, the _positive_ qualities diminish regularly towards the central point, as stated above. ❋ Daniel Clark (N/A)

Rendering the small ball B inductric and _negative_, negative sparks alone occurred up to 0.40; then spark and brush at 0.42; whilst from 0.44 and upwards the noisy negative brush alone took place. ❋ Michael Faraday (1829)

«Positive RNA viruses package positive RNA into their viral particles, while negative RNA viruses package * negative* RNA into particles.» ❋ Unknown (2010)

T h e word «negative» in negative spaces is a bit unfortunate because it carries, well, a negative connotation. ❋ Unknown (2009)

The phrase «negative slave» seems incredibly powerful to me. ❋ Pictureplane (2011)

Many of us learned from our families to deny what we label negative emotions. ❋ Melody Beattie (2010)

Let’s not be scared off by the connotations of the term negative ad. ❋ Unknown (2009)

The term negative forces, refers to both the General Laurent Nkunda leading the rebel forces in Democratic Republic of Congo and the Rwandan Hutu rebels in the eastern part. ❋ Unknown (2007)

Present-day terminology employs the rubric negative symptoms (51, 232), but traditionally these behaviors have been termed emotional blunting (116, 552). ❋ Michael Alan Taylor (1993)

These are the negative advantages, if the term negative is applicable, which would probably have resulted from prompt movements after Corinth fell into the possession of the National forces. ❋ David Widger (N/A)

In fact, the term negative seems to have become codespeak for knowledgeable and realistic. ❋ Unknown (2010)

Jamal: Yo you wanna go to the [the gallery].
Jay: Negative…
Or you could say Negativity…
[Jena]: I know you like tha [bul] Jerome!
Mia: Negativity. He looks like a monkey… ❋ E-RoC-Da-bELLs (2005)

Example 1) I made a negative comment about the smell of her [dirtbox] and she [cried].
Example 2) That’s a [negative, Ghostrider]. ❋ KYX! (2003)

After three [bleaching] treatments and four hours a week [under the sun] [lamps], Josh has become a negative. ❋ Atves Zeran (2007)

«Hey, shall we all walk in to the pub [half naked]?»
Response: «[Neg Neg], I’m not [feelin’ that] shit» ❋ Dagsy Parr (2007)

Everywhere there is an insecure pretty girl, there is some guy [negging].
[Negging] can be so [subtle], it’s pratically undetectable.
I was [wondering] why that guy was complimenting me while putting me down. He was negging of course. ❋ MadamexXx (2009)

Person 1: I don’t get why people feel the need to [put me down] as soon as they look at me.
Person 2: They’re Negging you. They probably see how you carry yourself and, based on internal insecurities that they refuse to acknowledge, arrive at the conclusion that you’re too confident and need to be knocked down [a peg].
Person 1: But I’ve never even met them before. And I’m not even as confident as I’d like to be.
Person 2: Doesn’t matter if you are or not, you look it to them, that’s what they perceive and hence that is what they are going to act on. Maybe [stroke up] a conversation with them and try to clear that up. ❋ 2kTriggerz (2020)

[Fire force] [negs] [one piece].(Fire force is better than one piece) ❋ Cudlyyy (2021)

— ‘I just might start [crying] /[neg]’
— ‘[i’m sorry] was that /neg? :(‘ ❋ Leximay003 (2020)

The classic neg
[pua] — «you have beautiful nails, are they real?»
(9+) -«not really»
pua — «Oh, I guess thats still cool»
pua — «that’s really cute, your nose wiggles when you speak»
(9+) -«no it doesn’t»
pua — «ha ha, [there it goes] again, sorry, its just really cute»
«I just kept tossing neg after neg at that 10 standing by the bar, and she loved it, she was giving me crazy [kino]» ❋ Ryder (2005)

Negativity is an [infestation] on [urban dictionary] ❋ Ucuntu And That Faggot Penguin (2019)

Источник

Recent Examples on the Web



Now, that masking period is a strong recommendation, unless an individual tests negative on back-to-back tests taken at least one day apart.


—Rong-gong Lin Ii, Los Angeles Times, 5 Apr. 2023




The approach teaches you to restructure your negative and irrational thoughts around money into more neutral or positive ones.


—Jocelyn Solis-moreira, Popular Science, 4 Apr. 2023




Just Looking to Get More Info on You? Initial reaction online to GM’s move skewed decidedly negative.


—Sebastian Blanco, Car and Driver, 2 Apr. 2023




Amber Lee, Brawley’s campaign manager, said the level of public vandalism creates a negative, discouraging environment for candidates and for voters.


—Emily Goodykoontz, Anchorage Daily News, 2 Apr. 2023




According to research from Yale, people with negative attitudes about aging shorten their life expectancy by 7.5 years.


—L’oreal Thompson Payton, Fortune Well, 1 Apr. 2023




Viewers’ initial reactions to the trial appeared to skew negative, with some seeing Paltrow as the latest example of a celebrity who is trying to avoid accountability.


—Uwa Ede-osifo, NBC News, 31 Mar. 2023




Though most of the comments on the post were positive, some users felt the need to give their negative opinions on her looks.


—Rosa Sanchez, Harper’s BAZAAR, 30 Mar. 2023




That way, potentially negative news doesn’t derail the conversation or serve as the last thing that sticks in concerned clients’ minds.


—Paolo Confino, Fortune, 30 Mar. 2023



But some designers don’t see having a diminutive dozing space as a negative.


—Anna Fixsen, ELLE Decor, 7 Apr. 2023




Trump’s negatives with Republicans (19%) are nearly three times worse than those of DeSantis (7%).


—Chris Pandolfo, Fox News, 4 Apr. 2023




When the judge Florence Y. Pan asked if agents had a fiduciary duty to secure their writers the highest possible advances, Walsh responded in the negative.


—Katy Waldman, The New Yorker, 16 Aug. 2022




Overwhelmingly, the comments in response — almost 2,000 of them — were in the negative.


—Will Carless, USA TODAY, 21 Mar. 2023




In contrast to the themes of balance in the first quarter moon, the third quarter is about detaching yourself from the negative to prepare for transformation.


—Aliza Pelto, Women’s Health, 17 Mar. 2023




The social mandate was to be carbon neutral or carbon negative, and scalable.


—Kate Knibbs, WIRED, 7 Mar. 2023




Each end of tape has two contacts, one positive (+), one negative (-).


—Bradley Ford, Popular Mechanics, 28 Feb. 2023




The photographs were known as Ambrotypes, and consisted of a glass negative developed so the silver deposit forming the picture was white, and then backed with black, so the picture looked like a positive, the photo being on the back of the glass.


—San Diego Union-Tribune, 12 Feb. 2023



Travelers also need to negative COVID-19 test within one day of flying to return to the United States.


—Dallas News, 7 Feb. 2022




Regardless, the outcome of this trial might not impact the ex-couple’s career prospects in all that negative a way, Engelmayer predicted.


—Victoria Bekiempis, Vulture, 26 May 2022




On the way to scoring a 25-19, 25-9, 25-4 victory, UW was not blocked once, held the Bobcats to negative hitting in each set and in the final set tied a program record for fewest points allowed in a set.


—Mark Stewart, Journal Sentinel, 2 Dec. 2022




And passengers boarding international flights to the U.S. no longer need to test negative a day before departure or prove recovery from Covid in the past 90 days.


—Allison Pohle, WSJ, 2 Aug. 2022




But with sales growth expected to go from triple digits in 2021 to negative this year, shares have tanked to a record low recently.


—Yueqi Yang, Time, 20 Apr. 2022




In response, Moody’s Investors Service recently lowered its outlook for the sector to negative.


—Nick Sargen, Forbes, 20 Sep. 2021




Eversource Energy executives are on the defensive after two ratings agencies cut the credit outlook to negative for Connecticut Light & Power, citing its run-ins with state regulators over the utility’s response to Tropical Storm Isaias last year.


—Stephen Singer, courant.com, 2 Aug. 2021




Positive antibody test results, which are by no means an absolute guarantee of immunity, will be accepted to enter, as will negative COVID-19 tests taken up to seven days prior to arrival.


—Julia Wick, Los Angeles Times, 17 Jan. 2021


See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word ‘negative.’ Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Источник

Other forms: negatives; negatived; negativing

Negative means focused on what is bad or lacking. A negative ad tells you bad things about the competition. A negative person loves to complain.

In math, a negative number is less than zero. People who see the glass half empty have a negative outlook. Ask your mom for ice cream and receive an answer in the negative? Don’t be too negative back to her, or it’ll be a while before you have another chance at ice cream.

Definitions of negative

  1. adjective

    characterized by or displaying negation or denial or opposition or resistance; having no positive features

    “a
    negative outlook on life”

    “a colorless
    negative personality”

    “a
    negative evaluation”

    “a
    negative reaction to an advertising campaign”

    Synonyms:

    destructive

    causing destruction or much damage

    pessimistic

    expecting the worst possible outcome

    antagonistic, counter

    indicating opposition or resistance

    perverse

    marked by a disposition to oppose and contradict

    unsupportive

    not furnishing support or assistance

  2. adjective

    expressing or consisting of a negation or refusal or denial

    Synonyms:

    dissentient, dissenting, dissident

    disagreeing, especially with a majority

    unfavorable, unfavourable

    not encouraging or approving or pleasing

    disinclined

    unwilling because of mild dislike or disapproval

  3. adjective

    not indicating the presence of microorganisms or disease or a specific condition

    “the HIV test was
    negative”

    synonyms:

    disconfirming

    Gram-negative

    (of bacteria) being of or relating to a bacterium that does not retain the violet stain used in Gram’s method

  4. adjective

    having a negative charge

    “electrons are
    negative”

    synonyms:

    electronegative, negatively charged

    charged

    of a particle or body or system; having a net amount of positive or negative electric charge

  5. “he answered in the
    negative”

  6. verb

    vote against; refuse to endorse; refuse to assent

  7. adjective

    involving disadvantage or harm

    synonyms:

    minus

    disadvantageous

    constituting a disadvantage

  8. adjective

    having the quality of something harmful or unpleasant

    “ran a
    negative campaign”

    Synonyms:

    bad

    having undesirable or negative qualities

  9. adjective

    designed or tending to discredit, especially without positive or helpful suggestions

    “negative criticism”

    synonyms:

    damaging

    destructive

    causing destruction or much damage

  10. adjective

    reckoned in a direction opposite to that regarded as positive

    “negative interest rates”

    see moresee less

    Antonyms:

    positive

    reckoned, situated or tending in the direction which naturally or arbitrarily is taken to indicate increase or progress or onward motion

  11. “a
    negative number”

    Synonyms:

    minus

    on the negative side or lower end of a scale

  12. noun

    a piece of photographic film showing an image with light and shade or colors reversed

DISCLAIMER: These example sentences appear in various news sources and books to reflect the usage of the word ‘negative’.
Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Vocabulary.com or its editors.
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Источник

Britannica Dictionary definition of NEGATIVE

1 

[more negative; most negative]

:

harmful or bad

:

not wanted

  • Car exhaust has a negative effect/impact on the environment.

  • the negative effects of the drug

  • We had a very negative [=unpleasant] experience at the restaurant.


—

opposite positive

2 

[more negative; most negative]

:

thinking about the bad qualities of someone or something

:

thinking that a bad result will happen

:

not hopeful or optimistic

  • She has a negative attitude about the new plan. [=she only thinks about the things that can go wrong with the new plan]

  • Why do you have such a negative outlook on the merger? [=why do you think the merger won’t work?]

  • “I know we’re going to lose.” “Don’t be so negative.” [=pessimistic]


—

opposite positive

3 

a 

:

expressing dislike or disapproval

  • The reviews were mostly negative. [=unfavorable]

  • The feedback about the new product was all negative.

  • There are no negative feelings between us. [=we do not dislike each other]


—

opposite positive

b 

:

showing or talking about the bad qualities of someone or something

  • The senator is running a negative campaign. [=a campaign that criticizes the other candidate instead of saying what good things the senator wants to do]

  • negative advertising [=advertising that criticizes competitors]

4 

[more negative; most negative]

:

expressing denial or refusal

  • a negative reply/answer [=a reply of “no”]

  • negative words like “no” and “not”

  • “I didn’t hear anything” is a negative phrase/construction/statement.


—

opposite affirmative

5 

a 

mathematics

:

less than zero

  • My checking account has a negative balance.

  • -2 is a negative number.


—

opposite positive

b 

:

less than the amount of money spent or invested

  • We got a negative return on the investment. [=we lost money on the investment]


—

opposite positive

6 

technical

a 

:

containing or producing electricity that is charged by an electron

  • a negative charge/current


—

opposite positive

b 

:

having more electrons than protons

  • a negative particle


—

opposite positive

7 

:

not showing the presence of a particular germ, condition, or substance

  • a negative HIV test

  • Her pregnancy test was negative. [=her test showed that she was not pregnant]


—

opposite positive

  • a negatively charged particle

  • The patient reacted negatively to the new drug. [=the patient had harmful side effects from the drug]

  • Customers responded negatively to the new product. [=customers did not like the new product]

Britannica Dictionary definition of NEGATIVE

[count]

1 

:

something that is harmful or bad

  • One of the negatives [=drawbacks] of the house is that it’s on a busy street.

  • Since the positives outweigh the negatives, I’m going to take the job. [=there are more good things about the job than bad things]


—

opposite positive

2 

:

a word or statement that means “no” or that expresses a denial or refusal

  • “No” and “not” are negatives.


—

see also double negative

3 

:

an image on film that is used to make a printed photograph and that has light areas where the photograph will be dark and dark areas where the photograph will be light

also

:

the film that has such an image

  • Can I have the negatives to make copies of the photos?


—

compare positive

4 

:

the result from a test that shows that a particular germ, condition, or substance is not present

  • There is a high rate of false negatives for this test. [=this test often incorrectly indicates that something is not present when it really is]


—

opposite positive

:

with a reply that means “no”

  • She answered (the question) in the negative. [=she answered “no”]


—

compare in the affirmative at 2affirmative

Источник

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