negative Nancy
1
8.9
- noun
- /ˈnɛɡətɪv ˈnænsi/
- Offensive
:
amargado
- Every time we try to make plans, Sarah acts like a negative Nancy and finds reasons to cancel.
Woman number six is the negative Nancy.
- Woman number six is the negative Nancy.
- Now, anybody that took it out of context, that shows where your mind was at your negative Nancy ass.
Examples
-
negative nancy
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What do you think, you negative Nancy?
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OK, I'll stop being a Negative Nancy.
Blog text (5) -
What's up with Negative Nancy over here?
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negative nancy
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Don't be such a negative Nancy; try to see the bright side of the situation.
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When asked about his opinion on the new policy, Mark replied like a typical negative Nancy, pointing out all the flaws.
Synonyms
28
7.0
A person who often says that plans or ideas will not work
25
3.9
A person who expects bad things to happen
12
7.4
A person who expects failure and gives up instead of trying to solve problems
9
8.0
A person who often seems unhappy and grumpy
3
9.3
A person who thinks the future will be bad and expects disaster
2
8.6
A person who often says negative things and lowers people's mood
2
8.6
A person who is often sad and thinks things will go wrong
1
8.0
A person who always says bad things will happen
1
8.2
A person who always expects the worst and often complains
A person who always sees the bad side of things
A person who often thinks things will go wrong and complains
A person who always sees the bad side of things and offers no solutions
Antonyms
How Negative
- Offensive
2
8.6
- Offensive
8
6.9
25
3.9
- Offensive
1
8.9
28
7.0
- US
77
4.1
Surface Forms
Morphology
negative + Nancy
The adjective 'negative' supplies the core meaning (pessimistic, critical) and 'Nancy' functions simply as a personal name used as a label, so a learner who knows both constituents can infer it denotes a person who is habitually negative. The rhyming nickname is stylistic but does not obscure the compositional meaning, making the phrase immediately comprehensible to learners familiar with using names as labels for personality traits.
Etymology
Negative Nancy may come from putting the word negative next to the common name Nancy to make a short, catchy label. The rhyme creates a clear image of a person who always complains, so the phrase now means 'a person who always sees the negative side'.