Not

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Can follow a finite auxiliary to negate a sentence, but not a finite verb. I should not have said that.

  • I not slept well last night.

Can precede any major phrase for so-called constituent negation. NP: Pat read not [NP: this book] but the other one. VP: Chris is likely not [VP: to get the scholarship] PP: Sandy put the book not [PP: on the shelf] but next to it. Forms: not, n't (when cliticised to an auxiliary)