Negatives - English meaning

noun

An even distribution of weight enabling someone or something to remain upright and steady.

Usage examples:

She lost her balance and fell

verb

Put (something) in a steady position so that it does not fall.

Usage examples:

A mug that she balanced on her knee

noun

Harmonious arrangement or relation of parts within a whole

noun

A combination of statements, ideas, or features which are opposed to one another.

Usage examples:

The proposed new system suffers from a set of internal contradictions

noun

The fact of something being the complete opposite of something else or very different from something else, so that one of them must be wrong

Usage examples:

You say that you're good friends and yet you don't trust him. isn't that a contradiction?

noun

A combination of words that is nonsense because some of the words suggest the opposite of some of the others

Usage examples:

Many people think that an honest politician is a contradiction in terms.

verb

Act against (something) in order to reduce its force or neutralize it.

Usage examples:

Should we deliberately intervene in the climate system to counteract global warming?

verb

To reduce or remove the effect of something by producing an opposite effect

Usage examples:

The tax must be adjusted upward to counteract inflation.

verb

To take action to reduce the influence of something that may be harmful

Usage examples:

Spending on marketing and advertising has increased in order to counteract falling sales., these ne…

noun

A weight that balances another weight.

Usage examples:

The trolley used a counterbalance and leverage action to reduce the effort of lifting loads

verb

(of a weight) balance (another weight).

Usage examples:

The sitter's weight counterbalances the tilting pressure on the backrest

verb

To have an equal but opposite effect on something in a positive way, so that it does not have too much of a particular characteristic

Usage examples:

Investment in forestry projects is intended to counterbalance the effects of carbon emissions., sho…

noun

The action of denying something.

Usage examples:

She shook her head in denial

noun

A statement that something is not true

Usage examples:

His statement is not a denial., planning staff recommended denial of the project., he claims he’s n…

noun

A statement that something is not true or does not exist

Usage examples:

Issue a denial the ceo issued a denial of the report that she is about to resign., [ + that ] offic…

noun

Disagreement that leads to discord.

Usage examples:

These issues caused bitter dissension in the party

noun

Strong disagreement, esp. within an organization

Usage examples:

There was a good deal of dissension within women’s rights organizations about setting political goa…

noun

Arguments and disagreement, especially in an organization, group, political party, etc.

Usage examples:

Dissension within there are signs of dissension within the ruling political party.

verb

Make the same in quantity, size, or degree throughout a place or group.

Usage examples:

The purpose is to equalize the workload among tutors

verb

To make laws or treatment the same for all people or companies in a group or place

Usage examples:

The latest proposals would implement appropriate measures to equalize the conditions of global trad…

verb

To make things or people equal

Usage examples:

They are putting pressure on the government to equalize state pension ages between men and women.

verb

Make ineffective; nullify.

Usage examples:

Alcohol negates the effects of the drug

verb

To show something to be wrong or to be the opposite of what was thought, or to cause something to have no effect

Usage examples:

The increase in sales was negated by the rising cost of materials.

verb

Make (something) ineffective by applying an opposite force or effect.

Usage examples:

Impatience at his frailty began to neutralize her fear

verb

To produce an effect that removes the effect of something else

Usage examples:

Raising the sales tax will neutralize the tax cut., acid in soil can be neutralized.

determiner

Not any.

Usage examples:

There is no excuse

exclamation

Used to give a negative response.

Usage examples:

‘is anything wrong?’ ‘no.’

adverb

Not at all; to no extent.

Usage examples:

They were no more able to perform the task than i was

verb

Make legally null and void; invalidate.

Usage examples:

It is at the discretion of the court to nullify the decision

verb

To cause an agreement or result to be no longer effective or consider it as not existing

Usage examples:

The referee nullified the goal.

verb

To make a legal agreement or decision no longer have any legal force

Usage examples:

The airline wants to nullify employees' contracts if no settlement is reached., a suit has been fil…

noun

A consideration or amount that diminishes or balances the effect of an opposite one.

Usage examples:

Widow's bereavement allowance is an offset against income

verb

Counteract (something) by having an equal and opposite force or effect.

Usage examples:

Donations to charities can be offset against tax

verb

To balance one influence against an opposing influence so that no great difference results

Usage examples:

The extra cost of commuting to work from the suburbs is offset by cheaper rents.

noun

An act of refusing to do something.

Usage examples:

He became tired of his friend's refusal to see him

noun

The act of saying that you will not do or accept something

Usage examples:

Her request for more money met with a refusal., refusal to do sth they were frustrated by his refus…

verb

Indicate or show that one is not willing to do something.

Usage examples:

I refused to answer

noun

Matter thrown away or rejected as worthless; rubbish.

Usage examples:

Heaps of refuse

verb

Dismiss as inadequate, unacceptable, or faulty.

Usage examples:

Union negotiators rejected a 1.5 per cent pay award

noun

A person or thing dismissed as inadequate or unacceptable.

Usage examples:

Some of the team's rejects have gone on to prove themselves in championships

verb

To refuse to accept, use, or believe something or someone

Usage examples:

The school rejects a third of all applicants., as a child, she had felt rejected by her mother., in…

noun

The dismissing or refusing of a proposal, idea, etc.

Usage examples:

The union decided last night to recommend rejection of the offer

noun

The act or process of rejecting someone or something

Usage examples:

[ u ] fear of rejection, [ c ] i applied for ten jobs and got ten rejections.

noun

The act of refusing to accept an idea, suggestion, proposal, etc.

Usage examples:

The company's rejection of the proposal came as a total surprise., i've applied for loads of jobs a…

verb

Crush or squeeze (something) with force so that it becomes flat, soft, or out of shape.

Usage examples:

Wash and squash the cans before depositing them

noun

A state of being squeezed or forced into a small or restricted space.

Usage examples:

It was a bit of a squash but he didn't seem to mind

noun

An edible gourd, the flesh of which may be cooked and eaten as a vegetable.

Usage examples:

There's much more beta carotene in traditional crops, from leafy green vegetables to squashes, melo…

noun

A constitutional right to reject a decision or proposal made by a lawmaking body.

Usage examples:

Neither state was given a veto over amendments to the act

verb

Exercise a veto against (a decision or proposal).

Usage examples:

The president vetoed the bill

noun

The power to refuse to allow something to be done, or such a refusal

Usage examples:

[ c ] the president has promised a veto if congress passes that bill., [ u ] the mayor will have no…