English speakers sometimes use the negative adverb not before an adjective rather than a single adjective. This can be done for a number of reasons. It can be used to be diplomatic and soften the statement. In other words, it is not so direct.
The response not bad can be used to answer the question How are you? It is similar to the response OK, fine or average. The response not good is also common. In response to How was the movie?, it is possible to use Not good. It is far less direct than a response such as Terrible.
In the sentence His presentation was unclear, the word unclear is softer than a word such as confusing. Likewise, the response I'm not sure is softer and less direct than I have no idea or I don't know. The use of not before the adjective is an example of diplomatic understatement.
The use of not before an adjective is often used to produce an indirect and diplomatic statement. Though direct words such as terrible can be used instead of not good and fine can be used instead of not bad, the use of not has a softening effect. The phrase not good is considered more polite than bad.
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