A negative work is done when an applied force F and the corresponding displacement S are

In physics, work done is defined as the dot product of the force vector and the displacement vector, expressed by the formula W = F * d * cos(θ), where θ is the angle between them. When the force and displacement are parallel (θ = 0°), the work is positive because cos(0°) is 1. Conversely, when the force and displacement are anti-parallel (θ = 180°), the work is negative because cos(180°) is -1. This indicates that the force is acting in the opposite direction of the motion, effectively removing or dissipating energy from the system. A common example is the force of friction, which acts anti-parallel to the direction of movement and thus performs negative work. If the force is perpendicular to the displacement (θ = 90°), the work done is zero.