In rhetoric, where the role of the interpreter is taken into consideration as a non-negligible factor, negation bears a much wider range of functions and meanings than it does in logic, where the interpretation of signs for negation is constrained by axioms to a few standard options, typically just the classical definition and a few schemes of intuitionism. Rhetoric (from Greek , rhêtôr, orator, teacher) is generally understood to be the art or technique of persuasion through the use of oral language and written language; however, this definition of rhetoric has been contested since rhetoric emerged as a field of study in Universities. ... Logic, from Classical Greek λόγος logos (the word), is the study of the principles and criteria of valid inference and demonstration. ...

Grammar

In grammar, negation is the process that turns an affirmative statement (I am the walrus) into its opposite denial (I am not the walrus). Nouns as well as verbs can be grammatically negated, by the use of a negative adjective (There is no walrus), a negative pronoun (Nobody is the walrus), or a negative adverb (I never was the walrus). For the surname, see Grammer. ... I Am the Walrus is a 1967 Beatles song, written by John Lennon and credited to Lennon-McCartney. ... Noun or noun substantive is a lexical category which is defined in terms of how its members combine with other grammatical kinds of expressions. ... It has been suggested that Verbal agreement be merged into this article or section. ... In grammar, an adjective is a part of speech that modifies a noun or a pronoun, usually by describing it or making its meaning more specific. ... In linguistics and grammar, a pronoun is a pro-form that substitutes for a noun phrase. ... An adverb is not a part of speech. ...

In English, negation for most verbs other than be and have, or verb phrases in which be, have or do already occur, requires the recasting of the sentence using the dummy auxiliary verb do, which adds little to the meaning of the negative phrase, but serves as a place to attach the negative particles not, or its contracted form -n't, to: The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... linguistics, a verb phrase or VP is a syntactic structure composed of the predicative elements of a sentence and functions in providing information about the subject of the sentence. ... In linguistics, an auxiliary (also called helping verb, auxiliary verb, or verbal auxiliary) is a verb functioning to give further semantic or syntactic information about the main or full verb following it. ...

• I have a walrus.
• I haven't a walrus. (Rare, but it is still possible to negate have without the auxiliary do.)
• I don't have a walrus. (The most common way in contemporary English.)

In Middle English, the particle not could be attached to any verb: Middle English is the name given by historical linguistics to the diverse forms of the English language spoken between the Norman invasion of 1066 and the mid-to-late 15th century, when the Chancery Standard, a form of London-based English, began to become widespread, a process aided by the...

• I see not the walrus.

In Modern English, these forms fell out of use, and the use of an auxiliary such as do or be is obligatory in most cases: Note: This page or section contains IPA phonetic symbols in Unicode. ...

• I do not see the walrus.
• I am not seeing the walrus.
• I have not seen the walrus.

The verb do also follows this rule, and therefore requires a second instance of itself in order to be marked for negation:

• The walrus doesn't do tricks

not

• The walrus doesn't tricks.

In English, as in most other Germanic languages, the use of double negatives as grammatical intensifiers was formerly in frequent use: This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... A double negative occurs when two forms of negation are used in the same sentence. ...

• We don't have no walruses here.

Usage prescriptivists consider this use of double negatives to be a solecism, and condemn it. It makes the rhetorical figure of litotes ambiguous. It remains common in colloquial English. In Ancient Greek, a simple negative (οὐ or μὴ) following another simple or compound negative (e.g., οὐδείς, no one) results in an affirmation, whereas a compound negative following a simple or compound negative strengthens the negation. In linguistics, prescription is the laying down or prescribing of normative rules for the use of a language. ... In linguistic prescriptivism, a solecism is a grammatical or other mistake or absurdity. ... Rhetoric (from Greek , rhêtôr, orator, teacher) is generally understood to be the art or technique of persuasion through the use of oral language and written language; however, this definition of rhetoric has been contested since rhetoric emerged as a field of study in Universities. ... In rhetoric, litotes is a figure of speech in which the speaker either strengthens or weakens the emphasis of a claim by denying its opposite. ... Note: This article contains special characters. ...

• οὐδείς οὐκ ἔπασχε τι, everyone was suffering, literally no one was not suffering something.

• μὴ θορυβήσῃ μηδείς, let no one raise an uproar, literally do not let no one raise an uproar.

Other languages have simpler forms of negation; in Latin, simple negation is a matter of adding the negative particles non or ne to the verb. In French, the most basic form of verb negation involves adding the circumflexion ne ... pas to the main verb or its auxiliary; je veux un morse ("I want a walrus"); je ne veux pas de morse ("I do not want a walrus.") Latin is an ancient Indo-European language originally spoken in Latium, the region immediately surrounding Rome. ... A circumfix or circumflection is an affix, a morpheme which is placed around another morpheme. ...

Philologically, from the Latin non: no, not indeed, a categoric negative root concept found in languages, even if in different forms. "Not that I know of", expressive of categoric negative assertion, egotistic, defensive, cognitive. Also a negative prefix to concepts, especially as expressed in L. nihil, Eng. emphatic no, definitively not. L. nemo is person oriented, and opposite to L. nihil and means no man, nobody. ne hemo (old form) = no man (homo). Nihil, no + thing, nothing is thing oriented, opposite to nemo. L. nullus means no, not, none (of all those or anything involved). ne ullus = not any one, where unulus is the diminutive of unus, one. Both person and thing oriented, where emphasis is on insignificance. None has ever been so - emphatic, person oriented expression, emphasis being here also denoted by ever (L. aevum, Gr. aion} which here really means: No (one + ever) has been.

See also

• Negation