Can なにか be used to mean "no"?


In a Japanese dictionary entry for the word なにか, I came across the following
definition:

> 今まで述べてきたことや相手の言葉などを否定して、それとは反対の趣旨を述べるときに用いる。いやいや。とんでもない。

The example sentence is

> 「―。この歌よみ侍らじとなむ思ひ侍るを」

Some questions:

  1. Does this mean 何か can be used to literally mean "No"? If so, is it like a more polite "no" (rather than saying "いえ", which is too direct or something)? Or perhaps it's a "no" but with less certainty (more like "hmm, not sure")?
  2. I'm unable to read the example sentence. Is it written in an old/classical style? And in general, when Japanese dictionaries use classical Japanese for an example sentence, does that signify that the way the word is being used isn't as common in modern Japanese?




This usage of 何か isn't used at all in modern Japanese, it's used in the
classical.

The example sentence is from the famous classical literary work 枕草子, all
written in the language of the Heian period (794 - 1185).

> 「何か, この歌よみ侍らじとなむ思ひ侍るを」

can be translated as:

> 「いえいえ、この歌というものを詠みますまいと思っているのですよ」

