Sample sentences for NEGATIVE - verbalworkout.com

5 meanings

(click/touch triangles for details)

1 —as in:
had a negative effect

Definition

bad or harmful

Higher interest rates negatively affected home sales.

negatively = in a bad or harmful manner

Other Uses (with this meaning)

Higher gasoline prices negatively affected sales of movie tickets.

negatively = in a bad or harmful manner

My luggage was lost. I got sick. I was robbed. The whole vacation was a negative experience.

negative = bad

Wage growth is lower than hoped and negatively impacting the stock market.

negatively = in a bad or harmful manner

I'm making a list of the positives and negatives of switching jobs.

negatives = things or characteristics that are bad or harmful

I was tempted to take another jab at Maxon, but I didn't want Marlee to see him in a negative light.
Kiera Cass -- The Selection

negative = bad

Roland draws his negative energy from the kids around him, and there are a lot of kids here for him to draw from.
Neal Shusterman -- Unwind

negative = bad or harmful

I wouldn't want them to be a negative influence on your sister.
Kody Keplinger -- The DUFF: (Designated Ugly Fat Friend)

negative = bad or harmful

Dodge had long ceased to be surprised by negative twists of fate.
Frank Beddor -- The Looking Glass Wars

negative = bad

The only negative about my going to Savanna's party was that now I wouldn't be able to go to the parade and the unicorn costume would he wasted.
R.J. Palacio -- Wonder

negative = thing that is bad or harmful

Dictionary / pronunciation — Google^®Dictionary / more samples — Oxford^® US Dictionary list — Onelook.com^®

2 —as in:
negative feedback from customers

Definition

to express criticism or disagreement, or (especially when talking over a radio or in a military setting) to say "no"

The responses to my plan were negative.

negative = indicated criticism or disagreement

Other Uses (with this meaning)

We're getting a lot of negative feedback about the proposed changes.

negative = indicating criticism or disagreement

The candidate ran a negative campaign.

negative = critical (pointing to bad things about her opponent—rather than good things about herself)

"Are we cleared for landing?" "Negative. The runway is not clear."

negative = no

At the table we discussed whether there was any saltpeter in the mashed potatoes. I defended the negative.
John Knowles -- A Separate Peace

negative = an answer of "no"

"Have you ever seen the place?"
Fanny gave a quick negative, and tried to hide her interest in the subject by...
Jane Austen -- Mansfield Park

negative = answer of "no"

There was a low grumble in the negative, but Mrs. Perkins didn't seem to notice.
Kody Keplinger -- The DUFF: (Designated Ugly Fat Friend)

negative = indicating disagreement

I've sent other people there, in the past. I've heard nothing negative.
Kim Edwards -- The Memory Keeper's Daughter

negative = critical or bad

(Shaking his head negatively but gently) No. Between a man and a woman there need be only one kind of feeling. I have that for you .... Now even .... right this moment ...
Lorraine Hansberry -- A Raisin in the Sun

negatively = indicating an answer of "no"

"I hate romance," said Flora out loud to herself. She liked the way the words sounded. She imagined them floating above her in a comic-strip bubble; it was a comforting thing to have words hanging over her head. Especially negative words about romance.
Kate DiCamillo -- Flora & Ulysses

negative = critical

Dictionary / pronunciation — Google^®Dictionary / more samples — Oxford^® US Dictionary list — Onelook.com^®

3 —as in:
a negative attitude

Definition

pessimistic (emphasizing bad things) or disagreeable

Don't be so negative. We'll find a way to make this work.

negative = pessimistic

Other Uses (with this meaning)

I need a break from her negative attitude.

negative = pessimistic

"I'm not being negative," I said. "I'm trying to be realistic."
Jeannette Walls -- The Glass Castle

negative = pessimistic (focusing on bad things)

Jessica had one of those contagious smiles that made it really hard to be negative when she was so freaking bubbly.
Kody Keplinger -- The DUFF: (Designated Ugly Fat Friend)

negative = pessimistic or disagreeable

Thomas was annoyed at Minho's constant negativity.
James Dashner -- The Maze Runner

negativity = pessimism or unpleasantness

"You're always so negative," she said.
Jeannette Walls -- The Glass Castle

negative = pessimistic (focusing on bad things)

I don't know if it's just Janne's nature to be negative or if there's something more serious going on, if he's playing some sort of game.
Stieg Larsson -- The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

negative = pessimistic (expecting bad things instead of good)

When Lacy stepped into a delivery room, she felt poisonous, too negative to be the one to welcome another human being to this world.
Jodi Picoult -- Nineteen Minutes

negative = pessimistic or disagreeable

He was reaching a point in life where the despair and negativity were threatening to take over his life.
Sampon Davis, et. al. -- We Beat the Street

negativity = pessimism

Another way to be prepared is to think negatively. Yes, I'm a great optimist. But when trying to make a decision, I often think of the worst-case scenario.
Randy Pausch -- The Last Lecture

negatively = in a pessimistic manner

Dictionary / pronunciation — Google^®Dictionary / more samples — Oxford^® US Dictionary list — Onelook.com^®

4 —as in:
The test came back negative.

Definition

did not find a condition or substance to be present

The pregnancy test was negative.

negative = did not find a condition to be present

Other Uses (with this meaning)

The test for bacterial infection came back negative.

negative = did not find a condition or substance to be present

We tested for lead in the drinking water. The results came back negative.

negative = did not find a substance to be present

"I'm not pregnant," she said. "I mean, I thought I was, but the test was negative."
Kody Keplinger -- The DUFF: (Designated Ugly Fat Friend)

negative = indicating that a condition was not found to be present

But negative data's still data.
Delia Owens -- Where the Crawdads Sing

negative = indicating that a condition was not found to be present

Results are often negative. We learn what something is not—and that is as important as a positive discovery to the man who is going to pick up from there. At least he knows what not to do.
Daniel Keyes -- Flowers for Algernon — Novel

negative = indicating that something was not found

We tested ourselves, and we were negative.
Scott Westerfeld -- Uglies

negative = indicating that a condition was not found to be present

"Every negative worked in the same sort of profession," Az said.
Scott Westerfeld -- Uglies

negative = people who did not have a condition

We ruled out blood type, gender, physical size, intelligence factors, genetic markers-nothing seemed to account for the negatives.
Scott Westerfeld -- Uglies

negatives = people who did not have a condition

Az and I looked very closely at all the negatives-that is, the few pretties who didn't have the lesions-and tried to figure out why they were different.
Scott Westerfeld -- Uglies

negatives = people who did not have a condition

Dictionary / pronunciation — Google^®Dictionary / more samples — Oxford^® US Dictionary list — Onelook.com^®

5 —as in:
a negative number

Definition

less than zero

It is a negative number.

negative = less than zero

Other Uses (with this meaning)

The company has a negative cash flow.

negative = less than zero (they are spending more than they are taking in)

The German bonds have a negative interest rate.

negative = less than zero (instead of paying interest, the government collects interest)

She was absent when the teacher described the number line. It made it difficult for her to understand negative numbers.
What math I was ever taught I learned doing the breakfast dishes and listening to Mother explain, over and over, what a fraction is or how to use negative numbers.
Tara Westover -- Educated

negative = being less than zero

There was a special news report on Channel 12 telling about how bad the weather was and Dad groaned when the guy said, "If you think it's cold now, wait until tonight, the temperature is expected to drop into record-low territory, possibly reaching the negative twenties!"
Christopher Paul Curtis -- The Watsons Go to Birmingham—1963

negative = minus (what follows is below zero)

In those cases, the comfort quotient became a negative number, and doing what came habitually actually detracted from happiness.
Jodi Picoult -- Nineteen Minutes

negative = less than zero

The girl freeze-out—today it was negative fifteen.
Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl -- Beautiful Creatures

negative = minus (what follows is below zero)

Dictionary / pronunciation — Google^®Dictionary / more samples — Oxford^® US Dictionary list — Onelook.com^®

Less commonly:

See a comprehensive dictionary for less common meanings of negative including some in the fields of electricity, physics, chemistry, medicine, photography, and grammar. Note that most non-technical senses of negative indicate that something is bad or lacking.

Search for other examples by interest

Interest — Source