Negative Contractions
Contractions of negated auxiliary verbs in Standard English are formed by reducing the negative grammatical particle not to n't, a clitic or suffix which is fused to the root verb form (which is modified in a few cases). The n't may form a separate syllable, as in isn't and wouldn't (which are two-syllable words), or may become part of the preceding syllable, as in the monosyllables don't, aren't and weren't.
The standard contractions for negation of auxiliaries are as follows:
- From forms of be: isn't, aren't, wasn't, weren't
- From forms of have: haven't, hasn't, hadn't
- From forms of do: don't, doesn't, didn't
- From modal verbs: can't (the full form is the single word cannot), couldn't, mayn't (rare), mightn't, mustn't, shan't (for shall not), shouldn't, won't (for will not), wouldn't, daren't, needn't, oughtn't, usedn't (rare).
The above contractions can appear when the verb follows auxiliary-type syntax as defined in the section Auxiliaries as verbs with special grammatical behavior. This includes all uses of be, and for some speakers have when used to denote possession (as in I haven't a clue). For details of the usage of the modal contractions, see the relevant sections of English modal verbs. For the possibility of inverting a negative contraction with the clause subject, see Contractions and inversion below.
The following four of the standard negative contractions involve changes to the the form of the auxiliary.
- In can't (for cannot), the vowel may change – can has /æ/ in the strong form and /ə/ in the more common weak form, whereas can't has /ɑː/ in RP and /æ/ in standard American pronunciation. It was formerly written "ca'n't".
- In don't there is again a vowel change, from the /uː/ of do to the /oʊ/ (/əʊ/) of don't.
- In shan't (for shall not), the /l/ sound is dropped, and the vowel changes (in RP, from the /æ/ or weaker /ə/ of shall to the /ɑː/ of shan't). This contraction is not common in American English. It evolved from "shalln't", and was formerly written "sha'n't".
- In won't (for will not), again the /l/ sound is dropped, and the vowel is /oʊ/ (/əʊ/) rather than the /ɪ/ of will. It derives from "woll not", a former alternative form of will not. It was formerly written "wo'n't", the first apostrophe representing the missing "ll".
Note that there is no standard contraction for am not. This is known as the "amn't gap". Some non-standard contractions for this and certain other negations are described in the following sections.
Read more about this topic: Contraction Of Am Not, Contractions
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