Negatives

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. Invalid Inputs :
2. Statements or expressions that indicate refusal or contradiction ; aspects or factors that reduce the desirability or effectiveness of something ; a photographic or film image where the tones are inverted from their original lightness and darkness
3. Assertions that reject or refuse acceptance ; elements that cause harm or hold back progress ; a reversed-color image created on film before printing a photograph

Etymology: "Negatives" is the plural of "negative," so its history is that of the singular noun. The root is the Latin verb "negāre," meaning "to deny," which is also the source of "negate." Latin built the adjective "negātīvus" from it, meaning "that denies" or "negative," and the word passed through Old French "negatif" into Middle English as "negative" and "negatif." Over time the noun sense developed, so that a negative now refers to a photographic image with reversed light and dark, a grammatical negation, or a numerical value below zero. Each of these keeps the original idea of saying "no" or reversing something.

Synonyms: denials, contradictions

Antonyms: affirmatives, positives