Difference between revisions of "Not"
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**I've not heard much. // I haven't heard much. | **I've not heard much. // I haven't heard much. | ||
**I'm not sure. // I ain't going. (<i>ain't</i> is fairly widespread colloquial American) | **I'm not sure. // I ain't going. (<i>ain't</i> is fairly widespread colloquial American) | ||
| − | *I personally do not combine <span style="color:darkblue;">n't</span> with <i>may</i> or <i>might</i>, though there is nothing particularly wrong with <span style="color:darkblue;">mightn't</span> even if it is relatively infrequent. <span style="color:darkblue;">shan't</span> is likewise rare.. (compare at google: <span style="color:darkblue;">couldn't // mayn't // shan't</span>) | + | *I personally do not combine <span style="color:darkblue;">n't</span> with <i>may</i> or <i>might</i>, though there is nothing particularly wrong with <span style="color:darkblue;">mightn't</span> even if it is relatively infrequent. <span style="color:darkblue;">shan't</span> is likewise rare.. (<b>compare at google</b>: <span style="color:darkblue;">couldn't // mayn't // shan't</span>) |
<p>Usage rules are fairly strict. In formal writing abbreviations are to be avoided. The only accepted use of the apostrophe in formal writing is generally to indicate the possessive / genitive case. This is a prescriptivist, but pragmatically important, rule to know.</p> | <p>Usage rules are fairly strict. In formal writing abbreviations are to be avoided. The only accepted use of the apostrophe in formal writing is generally to indicate the possessive / genitive case. This is a prescriptivist, but pragmatically important, rule to know.</p> | ||
| − | <blockquote>Counselor: You <span style="color:darkblue;">couldn't have known that Doug <span style="color:darkblue;">wasn't coming. <br /> | + | <blockquote>Counselor: You <span style="color:darkblue;">couldn't</span> have known that Doug <span style="color:darkblue;">wasn't</span> coming. <br /> |
Therapist: I <span style="color:darkblue;">didn't</span> know; and I <span style="color:darkblue;">wouldn't</span> have re-arranged my schedule if I <span style="color:darkblue;">hadn't</span> thought he would be there.<br /> | Therapist: I <span style="color:darkblue;">didn't</span> know; and I <span style="color:darkblue;">wouldn't</span> have re-arranged my schedule if I <span style="color:darkblue;">hadn't</span> thought he would be there.<br /> | ||
Counselor: He <span style="color:darkblue;">hasn't</span> been coming to those meetings for several weeks. | Counselor: He <span style="color:darkblue;">hasn't</span> been coming to those meetings for several weeks. | ||
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<p>Remember: the apostrophe has two uses in English: it represents a missing vowel:</p> | <p>Remember: the apostrophe has two uses in English: it represents a missing vowel:</p> | ||
| − | *the "o" of not | + | *the "o" of <span style="color:maroon;">not</span> |
| − | *the "a" of are (You're, We're, They're) | + | *the "a" of <span style="color:maroon;">are</span> (You're, We're, They're) |
| − | *the "a" of am (I'm (I am)) | + | *the "a" of <span style="color:maroon;">am</span> (I'm (I am)) |
| − | *the "ha" of "have | + | *the "ha" of <span style="color:maroon;">have</span> (I've (I have)) |
| − | *the "i" of "is | + | *the "i" of <span style="color:maroon;">is</span> (it's (It is)) |
<p>or it represents possession: Sofiane's / Luke's / Zeke's / Mohammed's / the students' notebooks.</p> | <p>or it represents possession: Sofiane's / Luke's / Zeke's / Mohammed's / the students' notebooks.</p> | ||
<p>a third case in literature: represent missing sounds more generally.</p> | <p>a third case in literature: represent missing sounds more generally.</p> | ||
Revision as of 02:11, 23 January 2014
negation
- not becomes n't when attached to an auxiliary which is not itself abbreviated.
- I've not heard much. // I haven't heard much.
- I'm not sure. // I ain't going. (ain't is fairly widespread colloquial American)
- I personally do not combine n't with may or might, though there is nothing particularly wrong with mightn't even if it is relatively infrequent. shan't is likewise rare.. (compare at google: couldn't // mayn't // shan't)
Usage rules are fairly strict. In formal writing abbreviations are to be avoided. The only accepted use of the apostrophe in formal writing is generally to indicate the possessive / genitive case. This is a prescriptivist, but pragmatically important, rule to know.
Counselor: You couldn't have known that Doug wasn't coming.
Therapist: I didn't know; and I wouldn't have re-arranged my schedule if I hadn't thought he would be there.
Counselor: No.
Counselor: He hasn't been coming to those meetings for several weeks. Therapist: I won't make the same mistake twice. Next time, if he isn't coming, I ain't going either! Counselor: We should send the secretary a message Thursday, don't you think, just to confirm? Therapist: Oh, you mustn't have heard, the secretary resigned yesterday. Counselor: Oh no, he shouldn't have. I'm not surprised though. He wasn't happy about all the criticism last month. Things may not have been perfect, but at least things got done. Therapist: Absolutely. Back to Doug again. Doesn't he have a cell phone?
Remember: the apostrophe has two uses in English: it represents a missing vowel:
- the "o" of not
- the "a" of are (You're, We're, They're)
- the "a" of am (I'm (I am))
- the "ha" of have (I've (I have))
- the "i" of is (it's (It is))
or it represents possession: Sofiane's / Luke's / Zeke's / Mohammed's / the students' notebooks.
a third case in literature: represent missing sounds more generally.
(cf. genitive case)</p>
adverb
Negations of this sort are considered to be adverbs by almost all dictionaries, like the words yes and no. Some Indo-European examples:
- nicht (Germ.)
- non (Lat.)
- pas (Fr.)
- nje (не) (Russ.)
predeterminer
Some deny the existence of determiners (articles, demonstratives, quantifiers), so the idea that a grammatical class such as predeterminers should exist is not always welcomed easily, especially by those who teach what is known in France as la grammaire scolaire.
- Not a one
- Not everybody
- not some time later (6m examples at Google, not a few of which are difficult to evaluate grammatically)
- not a few of which
- not the least of which
In any case, it is clear that the boundaries between adverbs and determination in the noun phrase (particularly deictic determination: today, tomorrow, this, that) are relatively fuzzy. At least four of the examples would clearly seem to be noun phrases.
