"You don't mean nothing"

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Ruslana

#426745 Wed, 03 Oct 07 06:49 PM

Hi, guys,

Recently I paid attention to a song of Nelly Furtado in which she sings:

Now you don't mean nothing at all to me...

Don't and nothing are not acceptable together, are they? But since she sings it anyway, perhaps it gives the sentence a shade of a certain meaning? For example, a scornful/slighting/disdainful shade? Or why else did such a line show up in the song?

Ruslana

Joined on Sat, Dec 17 2005

Russia

Senior Member (3,197)

"When the power of love overcomes the love of power, the world will know peace", - Jimi Hendrix

Feebs11

#426748 Wed, 03 Oct 07 06:54 PM

It's a song - and songs don't follow the rules. If it fits a metre or rhythm and sounds well, then it works.

She no longer cares anything about "you".

Feebs11

Joined on Thu, Nov 23 2006

Senior Member (4,912)

Anonymous

#426758 Wed, 03 Oct 07 07:39 PM

Here in the UK, a lot of people will say things like

'You don't know nothing' (You don't know anything)

'You didn't do nothing' (You did not do anything)

Don't worry about it; it's just us Brits not knowing nothing (!) about grammar!

Anonymous

Grammar

Kooyeen

#426762 Wed, 03 Oct 07 07:58 PM

Ruslana wrote:
Don't and nothing are not acceptable together, are they?

Yes, they are acceptable where double negatives are acceptable. They are ok in songs... actually, they are extremely common in songs, but it depends what kind of music you listen to (you don't find double negatives in classical music, LOL). Double negatives are common, and they can also be a feature of certain dialects.

We don't need no education, we don't need no thought control... (Pink Floyd)
I can't get no satisfaction... (Rolling Stones)
Sometimes I feel nobody gives me no warning... I don't have no time for no monkey business... (Freddy Mercury)

Kooyeen

Joined on Thu, Dec 22 2005

Italy

Senior Member (3,964)

If you don't have a sense of humor already, it's about time you buy one.

Dialects, Negatives

Loojka

#426779 Wed, 03 Oct 07 09:18 PM

'You ain't no gangsta' (50 Cent) Smile [:)]

Loojka

Joined on Sat, Jul 21 2007

Serbia, Europe

Full Member (147)

I'm the person your mother warned you about :)

Ruslana

#426894 Thu, 04 Oct 07 08:14 AM

I see. Thank you all, guys.

Ruslana

Neeraj Jain

#426903 Thu, 04 Oct 07 08:47 AM

Music follows no rules Smile [:)]

Neeraj Jain

Joined on Fri, Sep 7 2007

Regular Member (583)

Smile allows you to win.

Marius Hancu

#426938 Thu, 04 Oct 07 11:26 AM

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Double_negative

Marius Hancu

Joined on Wed, Apr 26 2006

Montreal, Canada

Veteran Member (11,673)

Negatives

Anonymous

#426944 Thu, 04 Oct 07 11:37 AM

Anonymous wrote:
Here in the UK, a lot of people will say things like

'You don't know nothing' (You don't know anything)

'You didn't do nothing' (You did not do anything)

Don't worry about it; it's just us Brits not knowing nothing (!) about grammar!

I should add that saying the above is acceptable, but writing that in an essay is a serious no-no!

Anonymous

Essays, Grammar

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