Bcoanu Simona-Maria, Master, an I, ELT

Double negatives in ELT

Why do Romanian learners use double negatives and how could they be avoided?
Introduction
Teaching English to Romanian students may seem to be quite a challenge for the teachers, especially in the
case of young learners, where it is rather hard to make them understand the grammar rules of the English language and
other abstract concepts that need more concentration and attention from their part.
The issues of the use of double negations, as well as that of the misuse of the prepositions, or of the false friends, and
so on are very common in ELT as a second language.
Here I will try to address the problem of the double negations in oral or in written communication, to find an
explanation for it and, to find, also, possible solutions or exercises that teachers of English might use with their
students.
What Are Double Negative Phrases?

In English grammar, a double negative is when someone uses two negative words (such as no and none) in a sentence,
whether it is used in oral or written communication. This is both redundant and incorrect grammar, and it is important
to understand what a double negative is to avoid it in order to not confuse the others.
Redundant

A double negative is redundant. "I don't have no water" is the same as "I do not have no water". This is because not
having "no water" is the same thing as having water, except it is expressed in a clumsier manner. So, double negatives
are redundant because they are the same thing as saying a positive statement.
Contractions

Double negatives often appear in contractions because they can sneak into a sentence more effectively. "Not" is a
much clearer negative than the contracted version in "won't" or "don't." So, make sure your contractions don't have
negatives, to avoid double negatives, because they are less obvious in these places. For example, "I won't go nowhere"
is the same as saying "I will not go nowhere;" "not" and "nowhere" are your two negatives.

Negative words in Romanian

In Romanian, negation can be made simply by placing "Nu" before the main verb. But sometimes a double
negative is required; that is, using both the negative form of the verb (nu+main verb/auxiliary verb / reflexive
pronoun) and another n-word.
E.g. :

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Bcoanu Simona-Maria, Master, an I, ELT

1. Nu pot s stau acolo (I can't stay there).

2. Nu au nimic de pierdut (They don't have nothing to lose Double Negative; correct sentence: They (dont) have
(anything) nothing to lose.
3. Nimeni nu l place ( Nobody likes him)
When a negative adverb occurs, it is mandatory to express the particle nu in front of the verb.
Incorrect: *Vreau nimic.
Correct: Nu vreau nimic (I want nothing).
Incorrect: *Beau cafea niciodat.

Since Romanian is a strict negative concord language, the sentential negation nu obligatory co-occurs with an n-word,
be it pre-verbal (3) or post-verbal (2). However, sentences where sentential negation licenses only one n-word are
never interpreted as double negations.
Why do Romanian students use more frequently double negative phrases in English?
Because of this feature of the Romanian grammar, children, who acquire it naturally from the very beginning
of their lives and long before starting to actually learn English, tend to apply the rules of the Romanian grammar to the
other languages they study in school. For instance, in the case of negative phrases, even after a couple of classes,
students still make the mistake of using double negations in communication in English , due to the fact that their way
of thinking is not prepared enough to be similar to the one of a native English speaker. Therefore, children translate
sentences from Romanian to English and vice versa word by word, neglecting the semantic translation or the adaptive
one which make the result of translation more appropriate and loyal to the original text.
Speakers should avoid using double negatives because if we say something like, I dont see no paper, a
logical interpretation could be that since the speaker does NOT see NO paper, then the speaker must be looking at
some paper. If there is actually no paper, it would have been better for the speaker to have said, I dont see any
paper, or I see no paper. Speakers probably make the mistake of using double negatives because it seems like a
natural way to emphasize negation

How to Teach Double Negatives in Grammar

The issue of double negatives is found in teaching grammar not only to native speakers of English, but also to
second language learners. As for any other obstacle or problem encountered in teaching students, the teacher should be
aware of the learners motivation, proficiency, anxiety, capacity of understanding, etc. Thus, he/she should try to see at
what point has the student stuck and find proper solutions in order to help him move on and keep up the pace with the
others.

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Bcoanu Simona-Maria, Master, an I, ELT

It is said that practice makes perfect and in that matter, the teacher should insist with a lot of exercises with
n-words and maybe with games, in the case of young learners, so that her/his students be able to leave behind the
double negatives in communication and apply and use grammar rules right.
It is quite difficult to teach English since it lacks of visual materials and students are asked more often to
memorize structures rather than to understand them. But the teacher can use a visual when teaching the concept of
double negatives, however. It can turn the concept into a concrete idea, one that will be remembered.
Therefore, one first example of teaching young learners double negatives is the one where the teacher uses an
apple to make students visualize them for a better understanding of the error. I did not try this method on students yet,
but is seems to be quite logic and interesting at the same time.
1. The apple demonstration
Instructions
1. Place an apple on the desk behind you before starting the lesson.
2. Hold your hand out in front of you with the palms up to show that they are empty.
3. Announce to your students that you have "no apple." Ask if they understand that you have "no apple,"
emphasizing the two words.
4. Put the apple in your hand and say, "Now, I don't have 'no apple' because I have an apple." Ask the child if you
have no apple. Again you will need to emphasize the words "no apple." Wait for a response. They may respond
with just "No" or replay that you have an apple.
5. Let the children hear you repeat the following: "Now I don't have no apple because I have an apple." See if
they understand the idea that when you create a double negative, the two negatives cancel each other out. This
is the core to teaching double negatives.
6. Take time to discuss various possibilities. One example uses what happens in everyday life. If you or your
students had a recent illness, you can use the example that involves that illness by saying,
"I have no fever. Yesterday I took my temperature, and I didn't have no fever because it
was 105 degrees." (You can use any number above normal, but it should be higher than
the normal body temperature.)
7. Wait for the children to mention that this sounds funny. Tell them that you are showing
why you don't use two words that say no together. Explain that while it may seem you
are saying that you don't have an apple or a fever, you are really saying that you do.
8. See if they completely understand before asking for a better way of phasing that you
have the apple. Watch for the signs of understanding when you teach double negatives.
9. Attempt to illicit an answer that eliminates negatives. Create lists of phrases with double
negatives, such as "I don't now nothing." Ask your child to tell you what the sentence actually says. Ask her to
tell you what she thinks the writer meant to say. Have the child rewrite the sentence correctly.

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Bcoanu Simona-Maria, Master, an I, ELT

2. Another way of avoiding double negatives in communication would be to tell students to use only one negative
word in a sentence and to try to eliminate any second reference to it by replacing it with a positive word.

3. One last advice from me for the teachers and for the students as well, would be to do as many exercises and as
much practice as possible. And students should also be exposed to native-like chunks of English communication in
order to get more familiarized to its grammar structures.
In this respect, I chose some exercises that may be teaching negatives in English.
Exercises with double negatives
1. Choose the word in parentheses that makes each
sentence below negative without creating a double
negative.
EXAMPLE: I wouldnt have ( none, any ) of the spinach.

5. I never go ( nowhere, anywhere ) without buckling my

seatbelt
2. Rewrite each sentence below to correct the double
negative.

1. Our family never does ( nothing, anything ) on the

weekends.

EXAMPLE: We havent tried none of these programs.

We havent tried any of these programs.

2. The manager ( can, cant ) seem to keep nobody

working for him.

1. We hadnt never realized that Theodore wrote so well.

2. I cant never remember that incident.

3. I wouldnt have ( no, any ) part in playing that trick on

Rod.

3. Ann hasnt said nothing about her new job.

4. Those books ( are, arent ) none of mine.

4. This ice cream isnt sold nowhere else.

5. There isnt room nowhere for this table.

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Conclusion
Double negatives are very common among the native speakers of a strict negative concord language, like
the Romanian language, but this issue can be surpassed through different methods and it depends mostly on the
teacher how he/she will make his/her students improve their grammar.
Bibliography:
1.
2.
3.
4.

Falaus, Anamaria, 2008, Romanian n-words as negative quantifiers, Universit de Nantes

How to avoid double negatives, http://www.ehow.com/how_8545948_avoid-double-negative.html
How to teach double negatives in grammar, http://www.ehow.com/how_8545948_avoid-double-negative.html
Activities for teaching negative sentences, http://www.ehow.com/info_8600764_activities-teaching-negativesentences.html
5. Avoiding Double Negatives, http://www.freewebs.com/jenniferths/doublenegative.pdf/