When can I use the contraction "ain't"?
I just saw this contraction, I was reading and it "isn't", "aren't","am not" but in present tense... is it right?
Is it used with "haven't" , "hasn't","there isn't" and "there aren't"?, How? = > Is It very informal?
I found a similar question searching in this website too, but I would like to know a little more.
Thank you for replying.
Sorry if I have many mistakes in my writing.(Si puede corregirme en los errores de escritura estaré agradecido)
Regards.
8 Answers
I wouldn't use ain't at all. I grew up in the Southern region of the U.S. where it is used. Once you start using it, you will not be able to stop. If you go to a job interview and use that word, they might think you don't know how to talk. It would be like calling your boss dude the first time you met him. It is now in the dictionary, but it wasn't there when I was a child. If you are learning English, I would never use the word ain't.
It's really dialectal, meaning that only people from certain regions (the Deep South being one) use it. I don't use it at all (I speak General American English). It's usually reserved for informal conversations, not formal ones.
EDIT: General American English is the name of the dialect you'll hear most often on news and on TV. For reference, I live in the North-East of the United States.
"Ain't" is poor grammar for "isn't"or "aren't". It is commonly used in extremely informal conversations. I would never use it at work or meeting someone for the first time. However, I have used it in informal conversations as slang and most people I know use this in informal conversations or jokes. But, I am very aware that I am making a grammar mistake and really shouldn't use it. I often use it in a humorous way. (It ain't happenin' today!")
In school, we would often tease the teachers by saying, "Ain't" ain't a word, ain't I right?"
There are people who use it in everyday conversation and you will hear it on television or movies, but generally it denotes that the person using it is poorly educated.
As far as I know the contraction "ain't" started out as a contraction for "am not" because there isn't one. "I'm not" is the only contracted form.
If you are not a native English speaker it is better that you know that "ain't" is a word one sometimes sees in literature as dialect in a character's speech, but not considered a word that is used by people who want to demonstrate that they are educated enough to be literate. It is abundantly used by certain segments of the population in the United States, but does not speak well of those who use it. Native English speakers can affect a dialect and use it in jest or mockery, and such usage is beyond even an advanced student of English.
Although I would recommend you to look at the British side of it. :-D
Yes, I have doubts with that. In the past tense is used "ain't too?
Perhaps a better way to word this would be:
In the past tense, is "ain't" used, too?
-or-
Is "ain't" used in the past tense, too?
It's dialectic of several varieties of speech found in various southern regions of the United States. It is, indeed, used sometimes in informal speech and can be used to replace various contractions. Again, the extent of this use varies with the speaker and the region from which they hail, but some of the following uses would not be altogether uncommon, depending on region (at least these are some with which I am familiar):
- I am not hungry: I ain't hungry.
- I have not eaten, yet: I ain't eat/ate, yet.
- There is no food in the house: There ain't no/any food in the house.
- There aren't any more left: There ain't no/any more left.
- I didn't know that: I ain't know that.
- I haven't got any money: I ain't got no money.
Just for fun: I ain't got nobody that I can depend on...
Here's one example.
"I am the person you are looking for. Ain't I?"
It means, "I am the person you are looking for. Am I not?"
"Ain't I" is informal. It has nothing to do with have or has.
