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　语言是交流的工具,同样的意义可以用不同的方式来表达。否定是语言中很普遍的现象,我们在阅读和写作时几乎都会遇到或者使用否定。在提到否定表达时,我们很容易就想到含有如: no, not, none, nothing, no-body, nowhere, never等等之类否定词的句子。然而,英语的表达方式丰富多彩,有些句子没有上述否定词时,从形式上看是肯定的,而实际的含义却是否定的,这就是本文所指的含蓄否定句。

含蓄否定的表达形式很多,可以通过词汇、习惯搭配、固定词组、特殊句型、虚拟语气、修辞方法、说话语气等方式来表达。

由于不同国家人的思维和表达方式不同,彼此语言也呈现着差异。鉴于英语中以肯定的形式出现的含蓄否定句很容易被中国英语学习者所误解,本文将试图对含蓄否定的形式、效果和作用做一总结和归纳,供各位读者和同仁参考指正。

一、含蓄否定的主要形式

(一)词汇手段

英语中的词汇博大精深、丰富多彩,有许多单词都可以采用肯定的形式来表达否定的效果。具体有如下分类:

1.词缀的使用。通过加否定前缀或后缀,可以使某些单词变成相反的意思,从而用来表达否定。例如:

(1)https://www.51lunwen.org/englishlinguistics/He wasunhappyover his friend’s departure. (Hewas nothappy over his friend’s departure. )

(2)It is natural forcarelesswriters to run into faults theynever think o.f (It is natural for thewriterswho are not care-ful to run into faults they never think o.f )

值得指出的是,使用词缀可以加强否定的意义,可以用CharlesDickens写的一句话来说明这一点。“I am sorryto inform you thatwe are not at all satisfied with your sister;we are verymuch dissatisfied with her.”作者首先用了“notsatisfied”来表达“不满意”,但是他觉得尽管已经使用了“at all”还是不够,所以又用“dissatisfied”和“verymuch”来强调,从而表现他“失望”的程度。

2.名词的使用。某些名词,如absence, lack, igno-rance, failure, refusa,l zero, naught (nought)等,也可以暗含否定。例如:

(1)Did any thing happen inmyabsence? (Did any thinghappen when I’m not in? )

(2)LackofVitamin B can produce a variety of symp-toms. (Nothaving enoughVitamin B can produce a variety ofsymptoms. )

(3)Should adopted children be kept inignoranceabouttheir true origins? (Should adopted children not been told a-bout their true origins? )

(4)Theirhopeswere reduced tozero. (They became nohope. )

3.形容词或复合形容词的使用。某些形容词或复合形容词,如: little, few, bare, open, awkward, blank,green, sandy, barren, blind, different, poor, reluctant,hard, ignorant, ill-favored, ill-used, ill-spent, ill-fat-ed, ill-considered, ill-timed, undernourished, underedu-cated, underhanded, underserved, under-burnt, underesti-mated等,也可经常用来表示暗含的否定意义。

(1)I paidlittleattention towhat the otherswere saying.(I paid almostno attention towhat the otherswere saying. )

(2)Then the family lived in a roombareof furniture.(Then the family lived in a room with no furniture. )

(3)I’m sorry, have I called atanawkwardtime? (I’msorry, have I called at a not convenient time. )

(4)Mothers are sometimesblindto the fault of theirchildren. (Mothers are sometimes can not see the fault oftheir children. )

4.动词的使用。以下所列举的是比较有代表性的用来表否定意思的动词,例如: fai,l miss, avoid, escape,slip, refuse, deny, exclude, forget, remove, cease,等。

(1)The letter isfailedto arrive. (The letter is not ar-rived. )

(2) The soldier was too nervous, and several shootsmissedthe target. (The soldier was too nervous, and hecouldn’t shoot at the target for several times. )

(3)The pinescapedmy eyes. (I didn’t see the pin. )

(4)The nameslippedfrom mymemory. (I couldn’t re-member the name. )

(5) But again the woundrefusedto hea.l (But thewound didn’thea.l )

5.介词的使用。在英语中,许多介词都有否定的作用,而且使用介词比用其它的否定方式更为简单,如: be-yond, above, without, against, out o,f instead o,f but, butfor, except, except for, beneath, of,f past, below, beside,behind等,例如:

(1) The book isbeyondme. ( I can’t understand thebook. )

(2) Luck isagainsthim. (He is not lu本论文由英语论文网提供整理，提供论文代写，英语论文代写，代写论文，代写英语论文，代写留学生论文，代写英文论文，留学生论文代写相关核心关键词搜索。