negative
Not positive or neutral; bad; undesirable; unfavourable.
Adjective 4 meanings
Not positive or neutral; bad; undesirable; unfavourable.
“The high exchange rate will have a negative effect on our profits.”
Of a number: less than zero.
Of a test result: not positive, not detected.
“negative detection of.”
Of electrical charge of an electron and related particles
Noun 4 meanings
Refusal or withholding of assents; prohibition, veto
An unfavorable point or characteristic.
A right of veto.
An image in which dark areas represent light ones, and the converse.
Verb 4 meanings
To refuse; to veto.
To contradict.
To disprove.
To make ineffective; to neutralize; to negate.
Interjection 1 meaning
No; nay.
Etymology
From Middle English negative, negatif, from Old French negatif, from Latin negātīvus (“that denies, negative”), from negāre (“to deny”); see negate.
Similar and opposite words
NEGATIVE at a glance
NEGATIVE has 8 letters and scores 12 points in Scrabble (N 1 + E 1 + G 2 + A 1 + T 1 + I 1 + V 4 + E 1) and 15 in Words With Friends, before board bonuses. It ranks #1,654 by how often it appears in everyday English. It is valid in ENABLE, NWL2023, Collins/SOWPODS.
Rhymes with negative
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