Found:
Negative polarity item
SEMANTICS: expression which needs to be in the scope of a negation
(or more generally: a monotone decreasing element).
EXAMPLE: if the sentence I don't need anybody has the
negation taken out, we don't get *I need anybody but I need
somebody. Therefore, the part any is taken to be a negative
polarity item. Because the negation of I need somebody is not I
don't need somebody, the part some is considered to be a positive
polarity item: it resists the presence of a negation (or its equivalent).
LIT. | Ladusaw, W.A. (1980) |