How does this "not" works?

Question

How does this "not" works?I'm reading this article:"http://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/fox-news-presenter-misses-the-point-of-shoshanna-roberts-catcalling-video-she-got-100-catcalls-let-me-add-101-9827752.html" Can you see this?There is this sentence:“I'm harassed when I smile and I’m harassed when I don't,” said Roberts on the Hollaback website. “I'm harassed by white men, black men, latino men. Not a day goes by when I don't experience this.”I'm wondering about this part:"Not a day goes by when I don't experience this"How does this "not" work grammatically?Or if I can rephrase that part, will that be "a day doesn't go by ..."?Could you tell me?Thanks in advance.

AlpheccaStars · Accepted Answer

Not a day = Not one day.
go by = passes

It means that he experiences this every single day. There is never any day without this experience.

CalifJim · Answer

Takehisa TanakaHow does this "not" work grammatically?

Like a determiner. No day goes by ~ Not a day goes by. This formulation usually appears in the subject position.

I just checked the number of chairs we'll need for our meeting. Not a chair is missing.
When the boss asked for volunteers, not a hand went up.

And then there's the famous

'Twas the night before Christmas, when all thro' the house
Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse;

CJ

Takehisa Tanaka · Answer

Thank you.
I now understand the meaning of the sentence.

There is one more question.
Is the "not" working as an adjective?
Could you tell me this too?

Takehisa Tanaka · Answer

Oh! It's like determiner.
Thank you.
I got it.

CalifJim · Answer

Takehisa TanakaIs the "not" working as an adjective?

No. Determiner. Like an article.

a, the, my, his, ..., no, not a, many a, ..., some, both, all, ...

CJ

Edit: Cross-posted.

Takehisa Tanaka · Answer

Thank you CalifJim.
I misunderstood.

Like an article.
I got it.

GPY · Answer

Takehisa TanakaIs the "not" working as an adjective?

Takehisa TanakaOh! It's like determiner.

Traditionally, determiners were often classified as adjectives. Some dictionaries, such as http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary, continue to use this classification for words like "that", "this", "some", etc. etc.. However, I can't find any dictionary that admits the possiblity of "not" being an adjective, or indeed determiner. Some dictionaries seem to lump this kind of usage in with the "adverb" meanings; e.g. http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/us/definition/american_english/not has the example "not a single attempt was made" under the "adverb" heading. Personally I feel unsure what part of speech it should be, so I couldn't judge between them.

AlpheccaStars · Answer

It might be a predeterminer, as "half" and "all" as in " half a loaf is better than none." "but for all their efforts, they would have failed."

Takehisa Tanaka · Answer

Thank you GPY.

I know different dictionaries or grammarians use different classifications to a word.
Your comment is also helpful to understand it.

Takehisa Tanaka · Answer

Thank you AlpheccaStars.

The word predeterminer is new to me.
I'll check it out.

How does this "not" works?

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