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Part of
Cognitive Linguistics and the Study of Chinese
Edited by Dingfang Shu, Hui Zhang and Lifei Zhang
[Human Cognitive Processing 67] 2019
► pp. 121–155

Chapter 4
Types of negatives and the noun-verb distinction in English and Chinese

| Chinese Academy of Social Science

In this study, it is claimed that, unlike in Chinese, the most important division of negatives in English is between the negation of nouns and that of verbs, but not between indicative and non-indicative negation, nor between the negation of there is and is. In Chinese the most important division of negatives is between indicative and non-indicative negation, or between the negation of you 有 ‘has/there is’ and the negation of shi 是 ‘is’, but not between noun and verb negation. This difference supports the thesis that, while in English nouns and verbs occupy two separate grammatical categories, nouns in Chinese constitute a super-noun category with the verb included, and thus a noun-verb division in Chinese should not be overstated.

Keywords: grammatical category, indicative negation, non-indicative negation
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.The division of negatives in English: No and not
  • 3.The division of negatives in Chinese
    • 3.1Ancient Chinese bu 不 / fu 弗 and wu 毋(无) / wu 勿
    • 3.2In modern Chinese: Mei 没/ wu 无/wei 未 and bu 不/fe i 非
  • 4.The primary division in Chinese grammar
  • 5.Negative affixes in English and Chinese
  • 6.Further notes on you 有 in Chinese
    • 6.1Properties of you 有
    • 6.2Usage extensions of you 有
  • 7.Philosophical background
  • 8.Conceptual metaphors in Chinese
  • 9.Conclusion
  • Notes
  • References
Published online: 20 November 2019
DOI logo
https://doi.org/10.1075/hcp.67.06she
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