Home Columns

I Don't Need No Stinkin' Double Negatives
by Shery Ma Belle Arrieta-Russ

A couple of years ago, a teen flick came out -- Can't Hardly Wait -- that starred Jennifer Love Hewitt and Ethan Embry.

While the film was amusing, pulled all the right strings and made teeny-boppers cheer on, its title is a case of bad grammar.

Yup, saying, "I can't hardly wait" is bad grammar.

Why?

Because it's a double negative.

Consider this sentence: "I don't want no sympathy from you."

Now, let's assume that the person who said the above statement really doesn't want any sympathy. But the sentence implies that what the person doesn't want is no sympathy -- which means, he or she wants sympathy. However which way you look at the sentence, it is grammatically incorrect.

If the person doesn't want any sympathy, he/she should say it either:

I don't want sympathy from you.

OR

I want no sympathy from you.

The subtle double negatives

Writers and speakers who always strive to write or speak correct English have less problem on double negatives. However, some words used in a negative sense are not recognized as negatives right away. They are sometimes combined with another negative and form a subtle double negative.

Here is a list of these subtle negatives:

• seldom
• but (used as "only">
• just
• merely
• barely
• hardly
• except
• only
• scarcely
• neither
• ever
• rarely
• nothing
• nowhere

Copyright © 2001 Shery Ma Belle Arrieta-Russ

Kick start your imagination, ignite your creativity, and begin your journey towards becoming an outstanding writer. Grab a copy of WEEKLY WRITES: 52 Weeks of Writing Bliss! from Amazon.com and receive 2 free e-books to encourage and nurture the writer in you. You'll also receive Write Memories, a journaling workbook available for free only to WEEKLY WRITES book owners. And finally, as a WEEKLY WRITES book owner, you'll have free access to e-mail courses such as JOYFUL WRITES: Celebrate Your Life through Writing For excerpts, reviews and what you need to do to receive the 2 free e-books, Write Memories and sign up for free e-mail courses, just head on to the Weekly Writes Book Official Site. (Clicking on the link will open a new window.)