"Nobody never gave me nothing"

[MissingMyHeels]

We were just discussing this sentence (said on Big Brother - high brow stuff, I know) and were wondering if a triple negative is still a negative or does it cancel out and become a positive in any way?

Would this sentence be "somebody always gave me something" iyswim?

No, I think with a triple negative one negative cancels one out, leaving a spare negative.

So: Somebody always gave me nothing.

Or: Nobody always gave me something (which makes no sense, but bear with me)

Or: Somebody never gave me nothing.

But if I think about it too long my head might explode.

bump

My ears are bleeding trying to work it out

I would translate as

Nobody didn't give me nothing therefore nobody gave something therefore nothing was given

To me, Nobody never gave me nothing, Everybody always gave me something. Right? Hmmmm.

Your post only just appeared Hassled - MN being very odd for me tonight!

It's very confusing but I think I see what you mean.

missed a word out.

Nobody never gave me nothing, means Everybody always gave me something.

It means nobody gave me something. If nobody gives you something, then everybody gives you nothing, or nobody gives you anything. So I suppose it makes sense in a round about way.

Obviously I know thats not what she meant btw

My translation - Nobody ever gave me anything ?!
or am I totally of track here.

My translation - Nobody ever gave me anything ?!
or am I totally off track here.

Oh, it does and it doesn't - it isn't maths and the communicative purpose is pretty clear, if inelegant. The whole "cancelling out" of negatives in language is a relatively recent phenomenon - in the Middle Ages multiple negatives were often used for effect - see lots of examples in Chaucer.

hassled is right. If you'[re logical about it, a double negative = a positive, but a triple negative must be a negative.

but as it goes, double negatives were common in standard english (with a negative meaning) until Victorian times. then some smartypants logician came along and decided that a double negative would make a positive. It happened at about the same time they decided that splitting an infinitive was sinful, and when the added a lot of unneccessary letters to words "to reflect the latin" (like the c in scissors and the b in debt)

ooh, habbibu said the same thing in fewer words. it took me 4 mins to write that post, honest!

Oh, Senora, a linguist after my own heart!

actually, I'm a linguistician.

Am not trying to be fun aiiiight but I think "Nobody has ever given me anything" will suffice.

Be ready yeah? You heard it from me.

You clever lot, just forwarded to DP thank you!

This has just reminded me of a wonderful Kris Kristofferson lyric

"and I don't need this town of yours more than I've never needed nothing else"

which translates roughly as "I hate this place more than I've ever hated anything"

(although there might be too many negatives in that too )

it should be nuffink surely

break it up

nobody never gave me nothing

nobody ever gave me something

nobody never gave me anything

OR (I think)
everybody always gave me nothing

What an interesting thread - and all inspired by Big Brother. Just goes to show...

Anyway, i think you'll find the CORRECT term is:

Nobody never gave me NUFFINK...

'Member I TOLD you, as Alex from BB would say...

It's threads like these that give Pendants' Corner a bad name

Pendants' Corner... and it's me giving it a bad name?