Positive and Negative Statements

Positive statements say that something is true or happens. Negative statements say that something is not true or does not happen. Knowing how to convert between the two forms correctly is an essential grammar skill for writing and sentence transformation exercises.

What You'll Learn

How to change a positive (affirmative) statement into a negative statement using the correct auxiliary verb
How to change a negative statement back into a positive statement by removing the negation
Which auxiliary verb to use for negation: do/does/did for simple tenses and is/am/are/was/were for continuous tenses and "be" sentences
How contractions work in negative statements (e.g., don't, doesn't, didn't, isn't, aren't)

When to Use

Denying a fact: "She does not live in Tampines." (The positive version: "She lives in Tampines.")
Correcting information: "The museum did not close early yesterday." (Correcting someone who said it closed early.)
Describing absence of action: "They do not eat meat." (Stating what someone does not do.)
Expressing a state that is not true: "The library is not open on Sundays." (A fact about the library.)
Transforming sentences in exams: "Rewrite the sentence in the negative form." (A common exam instruction.)

How to Form

Negating Sentences with "Be" (is, am, are, was, were)

When the main verb is a form of "be", simply add "not" after it.

Positive Statement	Negative Statement
She is a prefect.	She is not a prefect.
I am ready for the test.	I am not ready for the test.
They are at the playground.	They are not at the playground.
He was late for assembly.	He was not late for assembly.
We were in the hall.	We were not in the hall.

Negating Simple Present Tense Sentences

When there is no auxiliary verb in a positive sentence, you must add do/does + not and change the main verb back to its base form.

Positive Statement	Negative Statement
She plays the piano.	She does not play the piano.
They walk to school every day.	They do not walk to school every day.
He likes durian.	He does not like durian.
The birds sing in the morning.	The birds do not sing in the morning.

Important: When you add "does not", the verb loses its -s/-es ending. "She plays" becomes "She does not play" (not ~~"does not plays"~~).

Negating Simple Past Tense Sentences

Add did not before the base form of the verb. The verb changes back from its past tense form.

Positive Statement	Negative Statement
He finished his homework.	He did not finish his homework.
They visited the zoo.	They did not visit the zoo.
She wrote a letter.	She did not write a letter.
We caught the bus on time.	We did not catch the bus on time.

Important: When you add "did not", the verb returns to its base form. "She wrote" becomes "She did not write" (not ~~"did not wrote"~~).

Negating Sentences That Already Have an Auxiliary

When the sentence already contains an auxiliary verb (is, am, are, was, were, has, have, had, will, can, should, etc.), simply add "not" after the auxiliary.

Positive Statement	Negative Statement
She is reading a book.	She is not reading a book.
They have completed the project.	They have not completed the project.
He will attend the ceremony.	He will not attend the ceremony.
We can hear the announcement.	We cannot hear the announcement.

Common Contractions

Full Form	Contraction
do not	don't
does not	doesn't
did not	didn't
is not	isn't
am not	(no standard contraction -- use "I'm not")
are not	aren't
was not	wasn't
were not	weren't
has not	hasn't
have not	haven't
will not	won't
cannot	can't

Key Rules

"Be" sentences: add "not" directly after the form of "be": "She is happy" becomes "She is not happy." No extra auxiliary is needed.
Simple present without "be": use "do not" or "does not" + base verb: "He eats rice" becomes "He does not eat rice." Use does not for third-person singular (he, she, it) and do not for all other subjects.
Simple past without "be": use "did not" + base verb: "They played football" becomes "They did not play football." The main verb must return to its base form.
Never double the tense marking: When you add "does not" or "did not", the main verb must be in the base form. Saying ~~"does not plays"~~ or ~~"did not went"~~ is incorrect because the tense is already shown by the auxiliary.
Sentences with auxiliaries: add "not" after the first auxiliary: "She has finished" becomes "She has not finished." "He will come" becomes "He will not come." Always place "not" right after the first auxiliary verb.
Converting negative to positive: remove the negation and restore the verb form: "She does not like cats" becomes "She likes cats." When you remove "does not", the verb must regain its -s ending. "They did not go" becomes "They went." The verb returns to its original past tense form.

Common Mistakes

Wrong	Right	Why
She does not plays netball.	She does not play netball.	When "does not" is used, the verb stays in the base form -- no -s ending.
He did not went to school.	He did not go to school.	When "did not" is used, the verb returns to the base form -- not the past tense.
They not like the food.	They do not like the food.	You cannot just add "not" on its own. You need the auxiliary do/does/did.
I amn't sure about the answer.	I am not sure about the answer.	"Amn't" is not a standard word. Use "am not" or "I'm not".
She don't know the way.	She doesn't know the way.	Third-person singular (she) requires doesn't, not "don't".
We didn't saw the accident.	We didn't see the accident.	After "didn't", use the base form "see", not the past tense "saw".

Clue Words

Clue words signalling a negative statement:

not, never, no, nothing, nobody, nowhere, neither, nor, hardly, rarely, seldom, scarcely

Clue words signalling a positive statement:

always, usually, often, sometimes, every day, already, certainly, definitely

Auxiliary verbs commonly used in negation:

do not (don't), does not (doesn't), did not (didn't), is not (isn't), are not (aren't), was not (wasn't), were not (weren't), has not (hasn't), have not (haven't), will not (won't), cannot (can't)

Tip: To negate a sentence, first ask yourself: "Is there already an auxiliary verb?" If yes, add "not" after it. If no, add "do not", "does not", or "did not" depending on the subject and tense, and change the main verb to its base form.

Practice Tips

Find the auxiliary first: Before adding "not", scan the sentence for an existing auxiliary verb (is, am, are, was, were, has, have, had, will, can, may, shall, could, should). If one is there, "not" goes right after it.
Check the verb form after negation: After writing the negative version, look at the main verb. If you used "does not" or "did not", the main verb must be in the base form. If the verb still has -s, -ed, or an irregular past form, correct it.
Reverse the process to go from negative to positive: Remove "do not / does not / did not" and restore the verb's original form. For third-person singular present, add -s/-es back. For past tense, put the verb back into its past form.
Use contraction clues in MCQs: In exam questions, contracted forms like "doesn't" and "didn't" can help you identify whether the sentence is already negative. If it is, the task may be asking you to convert it to the positive form.

Quick Reference

Tense / Type	Positive	Negative	Auxiliary Used
"Be" (present)	She is kind.	She is not kind.	is / am / are
"Be" (past)	He was absent.	He was not absent.	was / were
Simple present	She reads every night.	She does not read every night.	do / does
Simple past	They played at the park.	They did not play at the park.	did
Present cont.	I am studying now.	I am not studying now.	is / am / are
Past cont.	We were running laps.	We were not running laps.	was / were
Present perfect	He has eaten lunch.	He has not eaten lunch.	has / have
Future (will)	She will come tomorrow.	She will not come tomorrow.	will
Modal (can)	I can swim.	I cannot swim.	can

Positive and Negative Statements (P5) (Primary 5)