Adjectives clarify and specify nouns. Negative adjectives offer the opposite position of positive adjectives and can be formed by using antonyms, prefixes, inserting “not,” or using comparative language.
Adjectives modify nouns and using an adjective is a way of clarifying or specifying exactly what is meant. For example, a student who is trying to advise a classmate to take a required class with a specific instructor might tell the friend to sign up for the class taught by the bearded professor. If every professor in the department has a beard, however, it’s more efficient to use a negative adjective in a description, or a professor who lacks a beard. A negative adjective simply offers the opposite position as a positive adjective and can be formed in several ways.
The most verbally efficient way to form a negative adjective is to locate an antonym for the positive position. In the example above, this would mean that the student would send the friend to find a beardless professor. Very many, though not all, English adjectives have opposites; for example, short is the opposite of tall, thin is fat, rude is polite, and so on. A great many adjectival antonyms, or negative adjectives, are obvious and are learned in the early stages of language acquisition. In other cases, the differences may be more subtle; for example, delicate is a negative adjective for both wholesome and sturdy.
Other negative adjectives can be formed almost as efficiently by simply preceding the adjective with a prefix. In English, dis, un, and mis all mean opposite, along with anti and im. So, someone who’s not inclined to agree is someone who disagrees, and if you’re unhappy, you’ve had better days. Misinformed means having the wrong information, and imperfect is just a way of saying not perfect. An anti-inflammatory drug is taken to work against the inflammation.
A negative adjective can also be created by inserting the word not before the adjective. This can be done if an antonym is not available or, more often, for emphasis. A mother who discovers that her children have made a mess might inform them that she is not happy because she carries more emotional weight than the nearly identical statement, unhappy. A job candidate who feels certain that he will be offered a job is likely to tell friends that he’s not worried because none of the opposites, which include fearless, intrepid, or undeterred, sound right.
Another way to form a negative adjective is to use comparative language. More, more, less and less temper the original meaning of the adjective. An attentive boyfriend who begins to lose interest becomes less attentive, while one who is determined to win his girlfriend becomes more attentive.
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