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Contractions in English: Meaning, Usage and Common Examples
You have probably heard someone use phrases like won’t or y’all before. They are in songs and in quotes. They can be heard on TV and in everyday conversations.
These are all examples of contractions in English. They help simplify the language.
In this post, we will show you useful English contractions along with how to use these contractions in your own speaking and writing, to get you sounding fluent faster.
Can’t wait to get started? Let’s begin!
Contents
- What Is a Contraction?
- Most Common Contractions in English
- When to Use Contractions
- Grammar Tips for Contractions
- Other English Contractions
- How to Practice English Contractions
- And One More Thing...
Download: This blog post is available as a convenient and portable PDF that you can take anywhere. Click here to get a copy. (Download)
What Is a Contraction?
In English, a contraction is a shortened version of a pair of words where at least one letter is dropped and an apostrophe ( ’ ) is added. For example, instead of saying “I am,” English speakers frequently use the contraction “I’m.” It has the same meaning, but it is a little shorter.
Contractions help to simplify language. In fact, they’re used everywhere in English, especially in conversational or informal situations.
To recognize English contractions, look for the floating punctuation mark called an apostrophe (“I’m”), which appears in most common English contractions.
For instance, the word “she’ll” (she will) isn’t the same as “shell” (as in, “a shell on the beach”), which has a completely different meaning.
Most Common Contractions in English
Most contractions in English are made with the following words: be, will, have, had, would, not.
Here are some of the most frequent contractions in English that you should memorize:
| Original | Contraction | Example |
|---|---|---|
| I am | I'm | I'm trying to improve my English. |
| You are | You're | You're such a sweetheart! |
| He is | He's | He's so handsome. |
| She is | She's | She's very beautiful. |
| It is | It's | It's not a problem. |
| We are | We're | We're probably going to be late. |
| They are | They're | They're really cute puppies! |
Negative contractions are also common:
| Original | Contraction | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Do not | Don't | I don't know. |
| Cannot | Can't | You can't have any more cookies. |
| Will not | Won't | I won't be able to attend the meeting. |
| Is not | Isn't | That building isn't safe. |
| Are not | Aren't | They aren't coming to dinner tonight. |
| Did not | Didn't | I didn't go grocery shopping today. |
| Have not | Haven't | They haven't seen that movie. |
| Would not | Wouldn't | My sister wouldn't ride a bike until she was 11 years old. |
| Should not | Shouldn't | You shouldn't watch too much TV. |
| Could not | Couldn't | She was so full that she couldn't eat another bite. |
| Does not | Doesn't | He doesn't understand what you said. |
| Has not | Hasn't | The mail still hasn't come yet. |
| Had not | Hadn't | I hadn't thought of that solution. |
When to Use Contractions
Most of the time, it is acceptable to use contractions in everyday English. People use them all of the time in both spoken and written English.
However, sometimes contractions are considered less formal than the full phrase. Saying “I can’t help you” is more casual than saying “I cannot help you.”
You generally wouldn’t use contractions in formal writing, like academic papers and legal contracts. For example, contractions like “they’re” and “can’t” sound too informal so you would avoid them there.
Make sure to always assess the situation to see if using a contraction is appropriate. Most of the time, though, using a standard contraction will be just fine.
Grammar Tips for Contractions
To speak or write confidently with contractions, keep these rules in mind.
1. Do not double up on contractions.
There should only be one apostrophe in a word. For example, “you’re’nt” is not proper English and is just plain weird.
2. With the exception of negative contractions, most contractions cannot go at the end of a sentence.
Make sure to say the entire phrase. For example:
“Is the cold contagious?”
Correct: “The doctor said it is.”
Incorrect: “The doctor said it’s.”
However, negative contractions can end a sentence. Take a look at this example:
Correct: “If he goes to the party, I won’t.” (Here, we get a full understanding of the speaker’s intentions. The speaker will not go to the party.)
Incorrect: “If he goes to the party, I’ll.” (Here, the meaning is unclear. This sentence leaves the listener wondering: “You will what? You will go to the party, or you will avoid him?”)
4. Contractions that sound very much like other words (or homophones) typically are not used at the end of sentences.
These include it’s (sounds like its), they’re (sounds like there or their) and you’re (sounds like your)
For example, if we ask the question: “Are they coming on vacation?”
Correct: “Yes, they are.”
Incorrect: “Yes, they’re.”
Other English Contractions
Aside from the most common contractions above, there are plenty of other contractions in English:
English Contractions with “Be”
| Original | Contraction | Example |
|---|---|---|
| That is | That's | That's awesome! |
| Here is | Here's | Here's the car I told you about. |
| There is | There's | There's a fly in my soup! |
| Who is | Who's | Who's going to the party tonight? |
| Where is | Where's | Where's my key? |
| When is | When's | Congratulations! When's the wedding? |
| Why is | Why's | Why's he looking at me like that? |
| What is | What's | What's for dinner? |
| How is | How's | How's the new job? |
| Everybody is | Everybody's | Everybody's here now! |
| Nobody is | Nobody's | Looks like nobody's coming to the party. |
| Something is | Something's | Something's making a funny noise. |
| So is | So's | I'm done with my food, and so's he. |
English Contractions with “Will”
| Original | Contraction | Example |
|---|---|---|
| I will | I'll | I'll finish the project later. |
| You will | You'll | You'll regret that! |
| He will | He'll | He should put on a coat or he'll get sick. |
| She will | She'll | She'll love her birthday present. |
| They will | They'll | I hope they'll get home before dark. |
| It will | It'll | Come to the party! It'll be fun! |
| We will | We'll | We'll arrive around 3 p.m. |
| That will | That'll | I'm not sure that'll be enough. |
| This will | This'll | This'll only take a minute. |
| These will | These'll | Those are too expensive. These'll work just as well. |
| There will | There'll | There'll be about 30 people at the meeting. |
| Where will | Where'll | Where'll you go next? |
| Who will | Who'll | Who'll take care of you when you get older? |
| What will | What'll | He lost his job last week. What'll he do now? |
| How will | How'll | Our phones don't work here. How'll we contact each other? |
English Contractions with “Have”
When you use “have” in a contraction, it’s only for talking about something that happened in the past.
Contractions are typically not used when “have” is the main verb showing possession. In other words, you could say I’ve seen that movie (I have seen that movie) but not I’ve a dog (I have a dog).
| Original | Contraction | Example |
|---|---|---|
| I have | I've | I've been to his house before. |
| You have | You've | You've been trying to contact her for days. |
| He has | He's | He's been looking for a new job recently. |
| She has | She's | She's already booked her hotel room. |
| We have | We've | We've been wanting to visit for a long time. |
| They have | They've | They've just arrived. |
| Should have | Should've | We should've turned left at the last light. |
| Could have | Could've | She could've scored high on the test, but she didn't study enough. |
| Would have | Would've | I didn't know you were at the party. I would've said hello! |
| Might have | Might've | I might've missed the error if you didn't point it out to me. |
| Must have | Must've | I must've forgotten the extra pens. I'm sorry. |
| What have | What've | Oh no! What've you done? |
| What has | What's | What's he been doing lately? |
| Where have | Where've | Where've they already traveled to? |
| Where has | Where's | Where's the cat been hiding? |
| There have | There've | There've been a lot of thunderstorms this summer. |
| There has | There's | There's been something different about you lately. |
| These have | These've | Wear your other shoes; these've got mud on them. |
| Who has | Who's | Who's got the marker? |
Notice that the contractions in this table that end with “s” look exactly the same as contractions using “is.” Pay attention to the context of the sentence to understand the difference!
English Contractions with “Would”
| Original | Contraction | Example |
|---|---|---|
| I would | I'd | I'd love to visit, but plane tickets are expensive. |
| You would | You'd | I think you'd be a great salesman. |
| He would | He'd | He'd probably be happier in a different city. |
| She would | She'd | She'd like to get a dog. |
| We would | We'd | We'd love to go see that new movie. |
| They would | They'd | If my parents were here, they'd really like this hotel. |
| It would | It'd | It'd be cheaper to buy all the tickets together. |
| That would | That'd | Do you want to go to the circus? I think that'd be a fun experience. |
| These would | These'd | I love sunflowers! These'd look great in my garden. |
| There would | There'd | If he doesn't come, then there'd only be five people for dinner. |
English Contractions with “Had”
The contractions for “had” and “would” look exactly the same (like “I’d”)!
So how do you tell them apart? It is all about the context.
If it’s followed by a past participle of a verb, it’s most likely “had.” For example: “When she called, I’d been eating.”
There are also some common phrases that use these contractions, like “had better,” which means something should happen or be done. For example: “She’d better call me back later!”
| Original | Contraction | Example |
|---|---|---|
| I had | I'd | I'd never been to the beach until last summer. |
| You had | You'd | You'd better come look at this. |
| He had | He'd | She wanted to go to the movies, but he'd already seen the film. |
| She had | She'd | After searching for a month, she'd finally found the perfect bag. |
| We had | We'd | We'd practiced often so that we could win the soccer match. |
| They had | They'd | They'd already finished cooking by the time we arrived. |
| There had | There'd | They went to the house that morning, but there'd been no one at home. |
Negative Contractions
All of these contractions use the word “not” to form a negative meaning. Here are other negative contractions that weren’t mentioned earlier:
| Original | Contraction | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Must not | Mustn't | You mustn't touch that. |
| Was not | Wasn't | That wasn't a good idea. |
| Were not | Weren't | Luckily, we weren't hurt in the car accident. |
| Am not; are not; is not; has not; have not | Ain't | I ain't interested in dance classes. |
Note that the word “mustn’t” is most commonly used in British English.
You should also be aware that the word “ain’t” is regional, and is considered slang in many areas.
Miscellaneous Contractions
| Original | Contraction | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Let us | Let's | Let's go shopping this afternoon. |
| You all | Y'all | Y'all need to pay attention. |
| Where did | Where'd | Where'd the dog go? |
| How did | How'd | How'd you know I was at the library? |
| Why did | Why'd | Why'd you throw that paper ball at me? |
| Who did | Who'd | Who'd you see at the store? |
| When did | When'd | I didn't see you come in! When'd you get here? |
| What did | What'd | What'd you find? |
| Good day | G'day | G'day to you! |
| Madam | Ma'am | Have a good evening, ma'am. |
| Of the clock | O'clock | It's five o'clock now. |
Just like “ain’t,” the word “y’all” is regional and is considered slang in some places.
The contraction “g’day” is mainly used in Australia.
Also, be aware that the words “y’all” and “ain’t” may be considered slang, depending on where you are. Some American dialects consider these acceptable, while in other places and situations, these words are considered very poor English and should be avoided. If you are in an English class, it is probably better to not use these.
How to Practice English Contractions
To master contractions, you will first want to memorize the list provided above. But you also need to be exposed to different speaking styles or dialects.
- For practice, try Wyzant, which has hundreds of English tutors, most of whom are experienced and certified. You choose between in-person lessons or lessons via video call.
- You should also watch YouTube videos and listen to songs from different English-speaking places to hear contractions as used by native speakers. For example, this YouTube video uses the song “Call Me Maybe” to help explain contractions:
- If you want to hear more sophisticated language, watch a movie with very proper English, such as “Pride and Prejudice.” If you want to hear dialects with a lot of contractions and slang, you could try watching the popular TV series “The Walking Dead.”
- Another resource is the language learning program FluentU.
FluentU takes authentic videos—like music videos, movie trailers, news and inspiring talks—and turns them into personalized language learning lessons.
You can try FluentU for free for 2 weeks. Check out the website or download the iOS app or Android app.
P.S. Click here to take advantage of our current sale! (Expires at the end of this month.)
- You can also get some interactive practice with online quizzes. This quiz at Softschools.com has multiple choice questions about English contractions, while another quiz requires you to write the answer. It is very good practice!
Now that you have learned the basics of contractions, use these resources and any others you can find to master contractions and improve your English!
Download: This blog post is available as a convenient and portable PDF that you can take anywhere. Click here to get a copy. (Download)
And One More Thing...
If you like learning English through movies and online media, you should also check out FluentU. FluentU lets you learn English from popular talk shows, catchy music videos and funny commercials, as you can see here:
If you want to watch it, the FluentU app has probably got it.
The FluentU app and website makes it really easy to watch English videos. There are captions that are interactive. That means you can tap on any word to see an image, definition, and useful examples.
FluentU lets you learn engaging content with world famous celebrities.
For example, when you tap on the word "searching," you see this:
FluentU lets you tap to look up any word.
Learn all the vocabulary in any video with quizzes. Swipe left or right to see more examples for the word you’re learning.
FluentU helps you learn fast with useful questions and multiple examples. Learn more.
The best part? FluentU remembers the vocabulary that you’re learning. It gives you extra practice with difficult words—and reminds you when it’s time to review what you’ve learned. You have a truly personalized experience.
Start using the FluentU website on your computer or tablet or, better yet, download the FluentU app from the iTunes or Google Play store. Click here to take advantage of our current sale! (Expires at the end of this month.)
