# not (10-not.org)

People say "not" to negate something. They mean the opposite, or that something should be excluded.

## What a model may hear
- Boolean negation (programming and logic): flip true to false or reverse a condition in code
- Logical NOT operator (databases and search): exclude results matching a term
- Bitwise NOT (low-level computing): invert every bit in a binary number
- SQL NOT (database queries): negate a condition in a WHERE clause

## Where people and models part ways
- Says: "I do not want X"
  Means: exclude X entirely
  May be taken as: the model may still include X as a low-ranked option or interpret it as a soft preference
  Say instead: "Exclude X completely. Do not mention X."
- Says: "not too expensive"
  Means: keep cost reasonable
  May be taken as: the model may treat this as a hard ceiling or ignore the subjective judgment
  Say instead: "Keep cost under $50, or tell me if nothing fits that budget."
- Says: "not sure"
  Means: I am uncertain
  May be taken as: the model may treat this as a logical operation on the word 'sure' rather than a statement of doubt
  Say instead: "I am uncertain about this."
- Says: "do this, not that"
  Means: prefer the first option
  May be taken as: the model may process both as equally valid inputs or negate the wrong clause
  Say instead: "Do only this. Ignore that."

## Tips
- Put negations early in the sentence so they bind to what you intend.
- Use 'exclude,' 'omit,' or 'only' instead of 'not' when you want a hard boundary.
- Double negatives confuse models; say what you want directly.
- In code contexts, say 'logical negation' or 'Boolean NOT' to be precise.
- If you mean uncertainty, say 'uncertain' or 'unsure' rather than 'not sure.'

## Often confused with
- no: a determiner or answer, not an operator
- nor: joins two negations, not a single flip
- none: a quantity, not a logical operation
- except: exclusion by inclusion of others
- without: absence of something, not logical inversion
- !: the symbol for NOT in many programming languages