Saying ‘no’ to double negatives
This grammatical misstep can confuse readers or mean the opposite of what you intended your sentence to portray. Here’s how to avoid them.
You would probably scramble to correct a sentence like this on your company website: “The facility will not allow no more visitors after 10 p.m.” However, double negatives still exist.
The sentence below came from a press release sent by a federal agency:
It is not uncommon for a firm, based on its own appropriate evaluation of potential suppliers and raw material, to change the source of a raw material after the device has been cleared by the FDA . . .
This sentence could be improved by changing the double negative “not uncommon” to “It is common for a firm, based on its own appropriate . . .”
These types of double negatives cause confusion, as readers must go back and re-read to understand your meaning. Worse yet, some double negatives convey the opposite of what’s intended, such as the following example:
The researchers cannot barely contain their excitement at the discovery.
Song lyrics are also often full of double negatives:
To steer clear of the grammatical faux pas, remember that many ordinary words have negative meanings. Avoid using “not” with these words:
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