The Rice University Neologisms Database

used as a function word to emphasize a following negative or to introduce a more emphatic, explicit, or comprehensive statement My friend wanted a quick way of rejecting me. “Neg” is possibly more polite and less scathing than “no,” since it uses a short vowel rather than a long one, and thus seems to linger less quickly in the air. In variation to the traditional answer of “yes,” people sometimes say “affirmative” (to mock the power of the person asking the question), and sometimes even use the word “negative.” As function words, these gained popularity in the military and were soon moved into the vernacular as they gained parodic importance. “Neg” is a clipping of the word “negative,” although it no longer has this parodic importance, and is often used instead by my friend instead of the word “No.”