The teacher said "In English a double negative forms a positive.
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@kibcol1049
First day of English class, prof says that there two words that he never wants to see or hear. One of them is “nice” and the other is lousy. Someone in the back asks, “what are the two words?”Tell us the lousy one first!
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The teacher said "In English a double negative forms a positive. In some languages, though, such as Russian, a double negative is still a negative. However, there is no language wherein a double positive can form a negative."
A voice from the back of the room piped up, "Yeah, right."This phrase is part of the language in Aotearoa New Zealand.
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English is my second language and phrases like
"we don't want no education"
always bother me.
@rzeta0 You and Pink Floyd too!
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@kibcol1049 here with my relevant username.
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@rzeta0 You and Pink Floyd too!
innit
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English is my second language and phrases like
"we don't want no education"
always bother me.
@rzeta0 @kibcol1049 Recursive joke, innit.
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@rzeta0 @kibcol1049 Recursive joke, innit.
@rzeta0 @kibcol1049 (Like "a little knowledge is a dangerous thing." (Pope actually said "a little *learning* is a dangerous thing."))
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@rzeta0 @kibcol1049 (Like "a little knowledge is a dangerous thing." (Pope actually said "a little *learning* is a dangerous thing."))
@rzeta0 @kibcol1049 (But that one is usually inadvertent. Pink Floyd did it on purpose.)
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The claim I have seen is that version of "right" derives from "hwaet", which was how a spoken story was opened, loosly meaning "pay attention" or, loosely, "wake up at the back." It's how "Beowulf" opens.
@Wolf_Baginski @kibcol1049 But Spanish has a similar expression: "Sí, claro", with the same negative meaning.
What happens is here irony acts, and that's why the meaning changes; it's not a syntax thing, like the double negative stuff. -
@rzeta0 @kibcol1049 apparently the double negative thing is a convention rather than a hard rule. Double negative can make a sentence more klunky (sound awkward) and it is usually better to try and remove it busy most people simply would not care.
@EF @rzeta0 @kibcol1049
A common issue in language learning/linguistics is how any given language uses double negatives and negative questions. -
@rzeta0 @kibcol1049 apparently the double negative thing is a convention rather than a hard rule. Double negative can make a sentence more klunky (sound awkward) and it is usually better to try and remove it busy most people simply would not care.
@EF @rzeta0 @kibcol1049 "I ain't not never doin' that no sir." Rolls right off the tongue.
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@EF @rzeta0 @kibcol1049
A common issue in language learning/linguistics is how any given language uses double negatives and negative questions.@HighlandLawyer @rzeta0 @kibcol1049 absolutely but in common speech, being understood and questioning where it is not clear, is easier. Am not a linguist so grammatical nuances are not my finest hour. I ask a lot of questions.
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@EF @rzeta0 @kibcol1049 "I ain't not never doin' that no sir." Rolls right off the tongue.
@fgbjr @rzeta0 @kibcol1049 no never not init!
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@fgbjr @rzeta0 @kibcol1049 no never not init!
@EF I say no nay never, no nay never no more
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@Wolf_Baginski @kibcol1049 But Spanish has a similar expression: "Sí, claro", with the same negative meaning.
What happens is here irony acts, and that's why the meaning changes; it's not a syntax thing, like the double negative stuff.@eleder @Wolf_Baginski @kibcol1049 In German, you can express something analogous with "Ja, nee, klar" ("Yes, naa, sure"), i.e. yes-no-yes.
What do you make of that?
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@eleder @Wolf_Baginski @kibcol1049 In German, you can express something analogous with "Ja, nee, klar" ("Yes, naa, sure"), i.e. yes-no-yes.
What do you make of that?
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R relay@relay.infosec.exchange shared this topic
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@eleder @Wolf_Baginski @kibcol1049 In German, you can express something analogous with "Ja, nee, klar" ("Yes, naa, sure"), i.e. yes-no-yes.
What do you make of that?
@jack @Wolf_Baginski @kibcol1049
Spanish also employs expressions like "Sí, no, sí", for example when asked a negative question: "Tú no vas a traer el libro, verdad?" (You're not going to bring the book, right?) -
English is my second language and phrases like
"we don't want no education"
always bother me.
This line is using a children choir and voicing the children's point of view, playing on the double meaning.
They say they don't need education in such a clunky way, confirming that they clearly need education.
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The teacher said "In English a double negative forms a positive. In some languages, though, such as Russian, a double negative is still a negative. However, there is no language wherein a double positive can form a negative."
A voice from the back of the room piped up, "Yeah, right."@kibcol1049 Reminds me of an old programmer joke:
A wife sends her programmer husband to the grocery store for a loaf of bread...
On his way out she says "and if they have eggs, get a dozen". The programmer husband returns home with 12 loaves of bread and says: "They had eggs."
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R relay@relay.mycrowd.ca shared this topic
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@jack @Wolf_Baginski @kibcol1049
Spanish also employs expressions like "Sí, no, sí", for example when asked a negative question: "Tú no vas a traer el libro, verdad?" (You're not going to bring the book, right?)@eleder @jack @Wolf_Baginski @kibcol1049
That's opening a totally different can of worm about how to respond to a negative question!!!
"Are you not finishing that?"
Does "yes" means "I will finish it" or "your statement is correct, I will not finish it".
I've learnt recently that French uses "si" (I will finish it) instead of "yes" (your statement is correct, i will not finish it) to answer a negative question. Native French speaker myself, I feel a bit ashamed about not knowing it before.
🫣
