Negative Concord – “No, of course not” vs “Of course not”: Understanding the Difference

differencemeaningnegative-concord

What is more correct, No, of course not or Of course not?
For example if I am asked:

Would you mind looking after my bag?

I can answer

Of course not.

But if I answer

No, of course not.

Is it correct too?
I do understand that they have the same sense. In my view No, of course not is slightly overloaded.

Best Answer

Both of the original poster's examples are correct and natural in Standard English. Which one is used depends on whether the person responding first thought to say "No", or first thought to say "Of course".

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