not friendly vs. unfriendly

[palinkasocsi]

Dear all,

Can anyone tell me the difference (in meaning, reference, etc.) between:

1. John is not friendly.
2. John is unfriendly.

Many thanks.

P.

[Pete]

Dear all,

Can anyone tell me the difference (in meaning, reference, etc.) between:

1. John is not friendly.
2. John is unfriendly.

Many thanks.

P.
1. John is not friendly.
-- This is a neutral sentence. It says that John doesn't act in a friendly way (he doesn't smile at you and greet you), but it doesn't say that he does anything that is specifically unfriendly.

2. John is unfriendly.
-- John acts in a specifically unfriendly way; he may make it obvious that he is avoiding you or he may say unfriendly, hurtful things to you.

"Not" is a simple negative; "un-" is a positive statement in the negative direction.

[Lucretia]

Hello palinkasocsi,


1. John is not friendly.
2. John is unfriendly.


Yes, I can see some difference.
1. John does not show any friendliness. He may be indifferent or wary or arrogant...
2. John is hostile.

I've looked up in Collins - unfriendly is defined as not friendly, hostile.

Still I reckon we can't consider all such pairs absolute synonyms, though most of them are.
1. Beth is not happy =? Beth is unhappy.
2. You are not fair = You are unfair.

Besides, the words in these pairs can't always be interchangeable.
The air strike may bring undesirable consequences.
The air strike may bring not desirable consequences. - It grates on my ear.

We need some native speakers to have their say.

Best wishes.

[Lucretia]

Sorry, it takes me long to answer, but I seldom check the thread. :o

[palinkasocsi]

Thanks Pete and Lucretia!

Palinkasocsi