# negative

Pronunciation: say "NEG-uh-tiv" /ˈnɛɡətɪv/

## Adjective

1. Bad, unpleasant, or harmful rather than good or neutral, as of an effect, opinion, feeling, or experience.
   - Simple: Bad or unpleasant, not good, as with an effect, a feeling, or an opinion.
   - _The review left a negative impression on potential customers._
   - _His constant complaining created a negative atmosphere in the office._
2. Of a number or quantity, including a temperature: less than zero, written with a minus sign.
   - Simple: Less than zero, like -5, or a temperature below zero.
   - _Subtracting a larger number from a smaller one gives a negative result._
   - _The graph dips into negative values below the axis._
4. Of a test or its result: indicating that the disease, substance, or condition being checked for was not detected.
   - Simple: Of a test, for example for an illness: showing that the thing being checked for was not found.
   - _The biopsy was negative, ruling out any malignancy._
   - _All three blood tests returned negative for the infection._
5. Pessimistic; inclined to focus on problems rather than the bright side of things.
   - Simple: Usually expecting bad things and rarely seeing the good side.
   - _Her negative outlook made it hard for her to enjoy small victories._
   - _He's too negative to believe the plan could ever succeed._
7. Of or having an electric charge of the kind carried by an electron and related particles.
   - Simple: Having the kind of electric charge that an electron carries.
   - _The negative terminal of the battery connects to the black wire._
   - _Rubbing the balloon on hair gives it a negative charge._
9. Of an answer, statement or sentence: saying no, or saying that something is not so, instead of affirming it.
   - Simple: Saying that something is not true or not the case.
   - _The negative form of the sentence is made by adding "not."_
   - _In logic, a negative claim denies what a positive one asserts._
11. Of blood or a blood group: without the Rhesus (Rh) factor on its red cells.
   - Simple: Of blood or a blood type: not having the Rh factor on its red blood cells.
   - _The hospital is asking for donors with O negative blood after the highway crash._
   - _Because the mother is Rh negative, her doctors are watching the pregnancy closely._
13. Showing features that fail to support a hypothesis or confirm a tested condition.
   - Simple: Not supporting the idea being tested, or not finding the condition being checked for.
   - _The trial produced negative results, undermining the proposed link._
   - _The trial produced negative results: patients on the new drug did no better than those given a placebo._
15. Describing a photographic image in which light and dark are reversed and colors appear as their complements.
   - Simple: Describing a photo image where light parts look dark, dark parts look light, and colors are swapped.
   - _In the negative image, the white church showed up as a dark shape against a pale sky._
   - _Scanning the negative frame restores the picture's true colors._
21. Less than none, said humorously to stress that there is none at all of something, as in having negative interest in it.
   - Simple: None at all. People say it as a joke to make zero sound even smaller.
   - _Sorry, but that theory makes negative sense, since the dates don't even line up._
   - _With three kids and two jobs, she has negative free time these days._

## Noun

3. An unfavorable point or characteristic of something.
   - Simple: A bad point or downside of something.
   - _The only real negative was the high price._
   - _She weighed the positives and negatives before deciding._
6. A photographic image in which light areas appear dark and dark areas appear light.
   - Simple: A photo image in which light and dark areas are swapped.
   - _He found a box of old negatives in the attic._
   - _The photographer developed the negative before making any prints._
8. A number or quantity below zero, treated as a thing in its own right, as when two negatives multiply to give a positive.
   - Simple: A number or amount that is less than zero.
   - _Multiplying two negatives gives a positive._
   - _The result of the calculation turned out to be a negative._
10. A claim that something is not the case or does not exist, as in the saying that you cannot prove a negative.
   - Simple: A statement saying that something did not happen or does not exist.
   - _Witnesses found it difficult to prove the negative that no warning had been given._
   - _Her reply was a flat negative: the meeting had never taken place._
14. A word that expresses negation, such as 'no', 'not', or 'never'.
   - Simple: A word like 'no' or 'not' that shows something is being denied.
   - _The word 'never' acts as a negative, denying that the event takes place._
   - _Some languages allow several negatives in one clause without their meanings canceling out._
19. A repetition in which the muscle starts fully contracted and is slowly lengthened under load, using only the lowering phase of the movement.
   - Simple: A weightlifting move where you slowly lower a weight instead of lifting it.
   - _Controlled negatives can build strength faster than lifting alone._
   - _After his final set, he did one extra negative, lowering the bar for a slow count of five._
20. A refusal to give consent, especially one that blocks or forbids something, as a veto does.
   - Simple: A refusal to allow or agree to something.
   - _Some delegates wanted Congress to hold a negative over state laws, but the proposal was voted down._
   - _When the question was put, a clear majority voted in the negative, and the amendment fell._

## Interjection

12. Used as a reply meaning no, especially in radio, military, and formal procedural exchanges.
   - Simple: Used as a reply meaning no.
   - _"Negative," the pilot replied, "we are not cleared for landing."_
   - _When asked whether he agreed, the officer simply said, "Negative."_

## Verb

16. To refuse or reject something, such as a proposal or a motion.
   - Simple: To say no to something and turn it down.
   - _Parliament negatived the bill on its second reading._
   - _If the members negative the motion, it cannot be raised again in the same session._
17. To contradict a statement or claim, or to show that it is false.
   - Simple: To say or show that something someone claims is not true.
   - _The new evidence negatived his alibi completely._
   - _Once the defendant raises self-defense, the prosecution must negative it beyond a reasonable doubt._
18. To make something ineffective; to neutralize or cancel out its effect.
   - Simple: To stop something from working or having any effect.
   - _The court's decision negatived the previous agreement entirely._
   - _A carefully drafted exclusion clause can negative the warranty that the law would otherwise imply into a sale._

## Other meanings

- (noun) The plate carrying negative charge in a voltaic or electrolytic cell.
- (adjective) Nonmetallic or metalloidal in character; contrasted with positive or basic.

## Origin

Latin negāre ("to deny") gave negātīvus ("that denies, negative"), which passed into Old French as negatif and into Middle English as negative.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/negative (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).