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# negation

noun (negation, uncountable; a negation, negations)

«negation» in the English dictionary: everyday — its meanings, how the lessons use it, and examples, each with its tree on Mova.

## Everyday

1. Saying «no» or «not»; making a sentence mean the opposite by adding a word like not, never or no. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/N/negation/#m1)
2. (maths, logic) The opposite of a statement: the negation of «it is raining» is «it is not raining». [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/N/negation/#m2)
3. (formal) The complete opposite or cancelling out of something. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/N/negation/#m3)

### In the lessons

In grammar lessons, negation is making negative sentences with «not», «don't», «never», «no», «nobody». In maths and logic puzzles, the negation of a statement is true when the statement is false. In formal writing: «cheating is the negation of fair play».

### Examples

- «I do not like it» is a negation of «I like it». [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/N/negation/#x1)
- Add «not» to make a negation. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/N/negation/#x2)
- The negation of «all cats are black» is «not all cats are black». [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/N/negation/#x3)
- Double negation, like «I didn't do nothing», is a dialect form. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/N/negation/#x4)
- In maths, the negation of «x is bigger than 5» is «x is not bigger than 5». [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/N/negation/#x5)
- Bullying is the negation of kindness. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/N/negation/#x6)

### Note

From «negate» and «negative». Trap: the negation of «all» is «not all» (some are not), not «none». In maths, negating a number (making it negative) means changing its sign: the negation of 5 is -5. Double negatives in Standard English cancel out, but in many dialects they just add emphasis.

## On Mova

- [Trees and pragmatics of «negation» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/N/negation/): every meaning and example parsed by Mova, with its dependency tree and frames.
- [«negation» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/negation.html) on Mova free.