Negative Pro-forms

Negative pro-forms are special function words that we use when we want to refer to the absence of people, things, or places.

What Are Negative Pro-forms?

Negative pro-forms are used when we want to refer to an absence (non-existence) of people, things, or places.

Negative Words

The English no-series words and other words are considered inherently negative (also called inherent negative universal). Which means they can make a sentence negative on their own.

Determiner	Pronoun	Adverb
no	nobody	nowhere (place)
	no one	never (time)
	nothing	no way (manner)
	none
	neither

Tip!

There are some uncommon negative words that are seldom used. Here is the list:

nowhence (adverb of source)
nowhither (adverb of purpose)
nowhen (adverb of time)
nowise (adverb of manner)

Negative Words in Positive Statements

Negative words are inherently negative, that is why they do not need another negative maker in a sentence. We use 'no one, nobody, nothing, and nowhere' with a singular verb.

Nobody came.

Nothing happens in this town.

I knocked on the door but no one answered.

I have nowhere to live.

Negative Words in Negative Statements

Do not use another negative word such as 'not' after negative words.

✗ Nobody ~~didn't~~ come. → Nobody came.

You shouldn't smoke ~~nowhere~~ in the building. → You shouldn't smoke anywhere in the building.

Negative Words: Number

We cannot use 'of' after nobody. We use 'none of' when talking about a group of people.

Nobody of ~~them~~ saw him. → None of them saw him.

When we want to talk about two people, we use neither (of).

Neither of his parents went to the wedding.

We use 'none of' before a plural noun or pronoun and a singular verb.

None of us is able to escape the consequences of our actions.

In informal English, we often use a plural verb after none of.

None of us care what happens to him.

Negative Words in Questions

We cannot use negative words in questions.

Is ~~nobody~~ here? → Is anybody here?

Does no ~~one~~ know the answer? → Does anyone know the answer?

Has he ~~never~~ been to Australia? → Has he ever been to Australia?

When we use nothing and nobody, the sentence is positive, but the meaning of the statement is negative. So, we need to use positive question tags:

There's nothing new about this, is it?

Assertive Pro-forms

An assertive pro-form is a type of word that stands in for another word, phrase, clause, or sentence where the truth of a positive statement is asserted.

Non-assertive Pro-forms

Non-assertive Pro-forms refer to a group of words or phrases that refer to specific things/persons, but it is not important to mention what.

Universal Pro-forms

Universal pro-forms are special function words or expressions to refer to the total number of something. In this lesson, you will learn more about them.

Alternative Pro-forms

Alternative means 'choice.' When we have many choices, we talk about one, another, and the other. These words signal the alternatives.

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