ESL General English Grammar Questions

Re: Cannot say 'me too!' for negative meanings?

Peaceblinkfriend — Sat, 19 Jul 2008 16:08:24 GMT

How funny would it be if B doesn't even no what he or she just said could mean.

I can't wait to say that.

Re: Cannot say 'me too!' for negative meanings?

Philip — Sat, 19 Jul 2008 15:24:07 GMT

"Me neither" jars my ear, so I prefer "neither do [or whatever verb] I".
I can't speak Chinese > neither can I [rather than 'me neither]
I don't want to see that movie > neither do I [rather than 'me neither']
She isn't very intelligent > neither am I [rather than 'me neither']

Just a humorous observation here about me too.
Comments at the end of a phone conversation:
A. I love you.
B. Me too.

Of course, B means "I love you, too"; but technically B is saying, "I love me, too".

Re: Cannot say 'me too!' for negative meanings?

Peaceblinkfriend — Sat, 19 Jul 2008 15:22:31 GMT

Thanks for all of your replies.

So when replying to something positive, we say 'me too'. But when replying to something negative, we say 'neither do I' or other 'neither's'.

PBF

Re: Cannot say 'me too!' for negative meanings?

Gencebay90 — Sat, 19 Jul 2008 13:11:27 GMT

I'm tired. - Me too / Same here
I'm not tired. - Me neither / Same here

I've heard "sama here" for the first time :), and it seems correct to me for both negative and positive

:)

Re: Cannot say 'me too!' for negative meanings?

Kooyeen — Sat, 19 Jul 2008 13:03:55 GMT

Yes, you need "Me neither" when you answer to something negative (Or "neither do I", "neither can I", etc.)

I'm not sure about "same here", but I suspect it can sometimes be used with both positive and negative sentences. I'm not completely sure though.
I'm tired. - Me too / Same here
I'm not tired. - Me neither / Same here

Re: Cannot say 'me too!' for negative meanings?

Peaceblinkfriend — Sat, 19 Jul 2008 12:16:36 GMT

Ah I see. Thanks for the clarification. So 'me too' really means 'I like that'. Can 'me too' mean 'same here' too?

Thanks again

PBF

[edit] Just to clarify, I composed this post before Huevos replied. That of course doesn't exclude Huevos from the 'thanks'.

Re: Cannot say 'me too!' for negative meanings?

Huevos — Sat, 19 Jul 2008 12:07:24 GMT

Peaceblinkfriend
Am I correct that you would only say 'me too' if what you are replying to is positive?

The negative equivalent of "me too" is "me neither".

Re: Cannot say 'me too!' for negative meanings?

optilang — Sat, 19 Jul 2008 11:40:30 GMT

Peaceblinkfriend
Am I correct that you would only say 'me too' if what you are replying to is positive?

For example,

A: I can't do that. I just don't have the experience.

B: ( B can't say 'me too', right? )

Thank you.

PBF

I like that. - Me too.

A: I can't do that. I just don't have the experience. - Neither can I/Neither have I.

Re: Cannot say 'me too!' for negative meanings?

Gencebay90 — Sat, 19 Jul 2008 11:19:36 GMT

Actually we shouldn't say "Me too" in responsing to a negative question because "too" is used for positive responses in the meaning of as well but I am not sure; a native will express it better. It may be, however, possible in spoken English. In spoken language nothing is impossible

:)

Cannot say 'me too!' for negative meanings?

Peaceblinkfriend — Sat, 19 Jul 2008 11:13:47 GMT

Am I correct that you would only say 'me too' if what you are replying to is positive?

For example,

A: I can't do that. I just don't have the experience.

B: ( B can't say 'me too', right? )

Thank you.

PBF