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# not

«not» in Mova's school dictionary: **Not makes a sentence say no, or the opposite: It is not cold** — its meaning for a pupil, its sense in the lessons and examples, with 5 sentences of Mova's corpora that use it.

### part of speech

adverb (not; short form n't)

### meaning for a pupil

1) Not makes a sentence say no, or the opposite: It is not cold. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/N/not/#m1)

2) Not can go before a word to say «no» to just that word: not quite, not me, not yet. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/N/not/#m2)

3) «Not … any» means none at all. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/N/not/#m3)

4) «Not only … but also» adds a second, bigger point. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/N/not/#m4)

5) (casual) «Not!» said after a sentence (joking, US) takes it back: «I love homework — not!»; «not bad» often means quite good; «not even» means it is not at all true. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/N/not/#m5)

6) (rough) «Not a chance», «not on your life», «not bloody likely» (UK) are blunt refusals. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/N/not/#m6)

7) (formal) The exam voice says «by no means», «in no case», «under no circumstances», «it is not the case that», «fails to», «other than». [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/N/not/#m7)

### sense in the lessons

«not quite» marks a wrong answer; «does not mean» warns about a cue («Here the word «more» does not mean adding»); «did not eat any» means nothing changed; in everyday life «not yet», «not at all», «why not?», «not bad»; in safety «Do not touch», «under no circumstances»; in casual talk «not even», joking «— not!»; in rough talk «not a chance»; in the exam voice «Which of the following is NOT …», «it is not the case that»

### examples

- Not quite: 2. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/N/not/#x1)
- Here the word «more» does not mean adding … [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/N/not/#x2)
- Tom did not eat any of the 6 cakes. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/N/not/#x3)
- I am not sleepy. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/N/not/#x4)
- It's not fair! [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/N/not/#x5)
- Do not run near the pool. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/N/not/#x6)
- «Can I have a cookie?» «Not now.» [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/N/not/#x7)
- The bus has not come yet. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/N/not/#x8)
- That is not my bag. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/N/not/#x9)
- «Will you share?» «Not a chance.» [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/N/not/#x10)
- «How was the test?» «Not bad, got 18.» [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/N/not/#x11)
- Which of the following statements is not consistent with the established facts concerning the boiling of water? [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/N/not/#x12)
- One swallow does not make summer. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/N/not/#x13)

### note

«does not mean adding» warns that a usual cue does not work here. Trap: «did not eat any» means nothing changed. In an exam «Which of the following is NOT …» asks for the one wrong statement; read the «not» before choosing. A joking «— not!» at the end flips the whole sentence. Short forms: isn't, aren't, don't, doesn't, didn't, can't, won't. Do not mix «not» with «knot» (a tie in a rope): they sound the same.

### In the corpora

- [Stories about annoying colleagues told at home are private and should not be repeated outside.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/adult-life/1-a-day-at-a-grown-ups-job/8/)
- [When a parent seems frazzled after work, it is usually the workload, not anything the child did.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/adult-life/1-a-day-at-a-grown-ups-job/18/)
- [Overtime is working extra hours beyond the normal ones; sometimes it is paid at a higher rate, sometimes not paid at all.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/adult-life/2-shifts-nights-and-other-ways-of-working/8/)
- [Some people go to work ill because they can't afford to lose the pay, which spreads germs to everyone else.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/adult-life/2-shifts-nights-and-other-ways-of-working/12/)
- [If prices rise and pay doesn't, a person is really getting poorer each year.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/adult-life/3-finding-a-job-and-getting-on/13/)

### Trees and pragmatics

[Every meaning and example of «not» parsed by Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/N/not/), each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.