There are two types of general statements, the universal and the particular. A “universal affirmative statement” is an “every” or “all” statement (“All whales are mammals”). It affirms something about an entire class. A “universal negative statement” is a “no” statement (“No fish have feet”). It denies something of an entire class. A “particular statement,” affirmative or negative, does not refer to each and every member of the class specified by its subject. It is usually marked by the qualifier “some” (“Some mammals are arboreal”; “Some potatoes are not new”).
