24/08/16 The Use of ‘NOT’ and ‘NO’
To make a word, expression or clause negative, we use not.
Examples:
- Not surprisingly, we missed the train. (NOT
No surprisingly…) - The students went on strike, but not the teachers. (NOT… but
no the teachers.) - I can see you tomorrow, but not on Thursday.
- I have not received his answer.
We can use no with a noun or –ing form to mean “not any” or “not a/an”.
Examples:
- No teachers went on strike. (= There weren’t any teachers on strike.)
- I’ve got no Thursdays free this term. (= I don’t have any Thursdays . . .)
- I called, but there was no answer. (= There wasn’t an answer.)
- NO SMOKING.
Sometimes sentences constructed with verb + not and no + noun have similar meanings. The structure with no is usually more emphatic.
Example:
There wasn’t an answer. / There was no answer.
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