Negative
Definition
Example
"(adj) : The storm created negative conditions that made travel unsafe for everyone."
"(adj) : Negative feedback can sometimes help people improve, but too much of it can affect their confidence and make it harder to focus on their strengths."
"(n) : The doctor said the test was a negative, so no further treatment was needed."
Explanation
Negative refers to something that is bad, harmful, or not helpful. It can describe emotions, feedback, results, or attitudes. Being negative can influence how people feel, think, or behave. For example, a negative comment is one that criticises or focuses on flaws, or a negative attitude means a person is thinking, feeling, or behaving in an unhappy or unhelpful way. A negative person may focus on problems, expect bad outcomes, complain often, or see situations in a discouraging manner. In health, a negative test result means the condition being tested for is not present, which is usually good. In mathematics, a negative number is less than zero. In general, the word shows the opposite of positive.