Is using a double negative a no no?

Answer 1

Ha ha. Yes, it's grammatically wrong in English.

Answer 2

Ho ho.

Depends what you mean: in some languages, double negatives are standard, and this was the case in English until surprisingly recently.

However, because 17th century Grammarians decided that English should follow certain of the rules of Latin, they promoted a view that the double negative is somehow illogical.

Of course, that's a bit like saying that Lord of the Rings is wrong because it isn't mathematical. There's nothing wrong with double negatives as such, and they're a perfectly ordinary part of many people's grammars - even English speakers.

They are, however, considered to flout the rules of Standard English, which is something like an etiquette system. So if Standard English is the medium you're using, double negatives are the equivalent of using the wrong knife at dinner.

Answer 3

It depends on which language you are speaking. In English, double negatives are a "no no" (cute question --cleverly worded, too!) In Spanish, a double negative is required.

Answer 4

You should not never use a double negative!

Answer 5

English - yes it's bad
Spanish, French, Portuguese - it's correct to use double negatives.

Answer 6

Heh- very witty. Finally, a decently humourous question.
In response, however, I'd say that in many situations, a double negative is double plus ungood, but occasionally it may not be un-dis-inappropriate.

Answer 7

Double negative indicate NO. NO. It is double negative . There is no doubt about it.

Answer 8

in english it's a definite no-no
in danish it's a no
in serbian you can have almost as many negatives in a sentence as you want

Answer 9

DN's really bug me especially when I hear them used by teaching staff when talking to children

Answer 10

It depends on which language you are speaking.