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negative

negative

135 2.3
Saying no or showing that something is not true
  • adjective
  • /ˈnɛɡətɪv/
translation icon : negativo
  • Jewel, why do you have to be so negative?
  • a negative response
  • positive or negative
  • negative liberty

He says that the concept of right is negative in contrast to that of wrong, which is positive.

Examples

  • She felt a negative impact on her mood after reading the harsh reviews.

  • "If you expect people to be negative toward you, they probably will be.

    Fiction book (1996)
  • So it is OK for people to have a negative opinion about you.

  • I think for that reason, right, it's just a negative association.

  • What is this negative talk?

  • There was no negative reaction after it came out.

  • Thus, the participants were not led into a negative direction by the questions posed by the researcher.

    Academic text (1999)
  • Generally speaking, they have a negative stigma and are usually associated with crime and gangs.

    Academic text (2011)
  • Many students have a negative attitude towards long assignments, which can affect their performance.

  • The report highlighted several negative effects of pollution on public health.

Synonyms

negatory
vsnegative
  • Slang
3 8.6

A quick informal no or refusal

is a general term for denial or absence in many contexts

Antonyms

324 4.1

Showing agreement or approval, like saying yes

Compounds

A way of thinking that expects bad things to happen

negative feedback
  • Specialized
10 3.9

Part of a system's output that is sent back to reduce change and keep it stable

5 5.8

A simple, harmful idea about a group of people

A bad way to show or talk about something

3 5.6

A sentence that uses two negative words in the same clause

negative charge
  • Specialized
2 4.1

A state when an object has more electrons than protons and so attracts positive objects, for example a rubbed balloon

negative correlation
  • Specialized
1 4.6

A connection between two things where one goes up as the other goes down

A tendency to expect bad things to happen

An account amount below zero when you owe money to the bank

negative Nancy
  • Offensive
1 8.9

A person who always expects bad things to happen

negative Nelly
  • Offensive
1 8.2

A person who always expects the worst and often complains

Something unpleasant that makes an action less likely

Rh-negative blood
  • Specialized
1 5.0

Blood with red blood cells that do not have the Rh factor

7.3

The end of a magnet that points toward the Earth's south

negative muon
  • Specialized
9.9

A tiny charged particle that lasts about 2 microseconds and becomes an electron and two neutrinos

Negative Ned
  • Offensive
8.7

A person who always sees the bad side of things

negative pole
  • Specialized
3.9

The end of a magnet that points toward the Earth's south

negative bitchola
  • Offensive
9.9

A person who often thinks things will go wrong and complains

negative chemotaxis
  • Specialized
7.8

Movement of a cell or small organism away from a chemical

4.6

An electronic system that returns part of the output to reduce and steady the signal

7.7

A way to show someone is not one of the known people so they cannot make multiple accounts

negative pole
  • Specialized
4.0

The end of a battery marked with a minus sign that connects to the black wire

negative reinforcer
  • Specialized
7.9

Taking away something unpleasant makes a person or animal do something more often

A thing taken away to make an action less likely, for example leaving a room when a child cries

An unpleasant thing that makes someone feel bad or lose interest

6.0

A blood group in which red blood cells do not have the Rh factor

Rh negative
  • Specialized
6.8

Having blood whose red blood cells do not have the Rh factor

How Negative

dismissive
43 5.6
negative
135 2.3
opposed
1 3.5
affirmative
324 4.1

Surface Forms

negative positive
negativer comparative
negativest superlative

Morphology

negative = negate (transparent) = negate + ive

The adjectival sense 'expressing denial or negation' follows directly from the verb 'negate' plus the adjectival suffix '-ive'.

Etymology

Negative comes from the Latin verb negare 'to deny', so a negative answer or statement is one that says 'no' or shows the absence of something.