In English, a double negative makes a positive. I'm not sure why the article said it was acceptable to use a double negative in an informal situation, since it changes the meaning of the sentence. So, "I cannot do nothing" would actually mean "I can do something". The only time that "I cannot do nothing" would be correct is if the speaker is saying that they are incapable of not taking action. Another way to say it is "I must do something". For example, "I can't do nothing while they need help" means "I must do something while they need help". In general, though, it's safer to avoid using double negatives, because the rules of grammar make it a positive (and careful listeners will tease you about it!). In the example you gave above, it would be better to say "I cannot do anything to change my situation." Remember: something, anything, and nothing all mean the same thing, but: -something is used in grammatically positive sentences (sentences with a positive verb, like do or can) with a positive meaning. Ex: I can do something. -anything is used in grammatically negative sentences (sentences with a negative verb, like don't or can't). Ex: I can't do anything. -nothing is used in grammatically positive sentences with a negative meaning. Ex: I can do nothing. Hope this helps!

Hi, "I cannot do nothing to change my situation" is absolutely NOT correct, although maybe your friend heard this as slang, in lots of dialects you can hear bad grammar. The correct normal version would be "I cannot do anything to change my situation", and you could put an emphasis on 'anything' in spoken English. Otherwise you could say "I can do absolutely nothing..." or "I cannot do anything at all..." to give more emphasis.

I'm going to slightly disagree with the earlier responses. Generally speaking, in Standard English, you should not use the double negative. The sentence should be "I cannot do anything to change my situation." You were right. In your speech and writing, you should avoid the double negative. However, English speakers sometimes deliberately use non-standard, non-formal English in order to make a point. They'll also use emphasis, cadence, and tone when doing so. Your friend's *reasoning* is correct; his application is lacking. It is tricky to pull this off when speaking. It is almost impossible to do correctly in writing. Your friend didn't successfully use non-standard English. In this case, your friend could have said "I can't do nothing to change my situation" with very specific inflections on both "can't" and "nothing." If he said "cannot," then he needs to avoid using a double negative for emphasis.