Grammar lesson

[Nagala]

No clue. I just made that up.
Made sense to me.

 

[Sharkbait]

Where did "ain't" come from?
I mean, the root word(s). Like for example, "wanna" > "want to".

Nonstandard

1. Contraction of am not.
2. Used also as a contraction for are not, is not, has not, and have not.

Usage Note: Ain't has a long history of controversy. It first appeared in 1778, evolving from an earlier an't, which arose almost a century earlier as a contraction of are not and am not. In fact, ain't arose at the tail end of an era that saw the introduction of a number of our most common contractions, including don't and won't. But while don't and won't eventually became accepted at all levels of speech and writing, ain't was to receive a barrage of criticism in the 19th century for having no set sequence of words from which it can be contracted and for being a “vulgarism,” that is, a term used by the lower classes, although an't at least had been originally used by the upper classes as well. At the same time ain't's uses were multiplying to include has not, have not, and is not, by influence of forms like ha'n't and i'n't. It may be that these extended uses helped fuel the negative reaction. Whatever the case, criticism of ain't by usage commentators and teachers has not subsided, and the use of ain't is often regarded as a sign of ignorance. ·But despite all the attempts to ban it, ain't continues to enjoy extensive use in speech. Even educated and upper-class speakers see no substitute in folksy expressions such as Say it ain't so and You ain't seen nothin' yet. ·The stigmatization of ain't leaves us with no happy alternative for use in first-person questions. The widely used aren't I? though illogical, was found acceptable for use in speech by a majority of the Usage Panel in an earlier survey, but in writing there is no acceptable substitute for the stilted am I not?

 

[Geronimo]

Fail English that is unimpossible.

 

[Darfion]

I don't not never use bad grammer

 

[danalec99]

Where did "ain't" come from?
I mean, the root word(s). Like for example, "wanna" > "want to".

Nonstandard

1. Contraction of am not.
2. Used also as a contraction for are not, is not, has not, and have not.

Usage Note: Ain't has a long history of controversy. It first appeared in 1778, evolving from an earlier an't, which arose almost a century earlier as a contraction of are not and am not. In fact, ain't arose at the tail end of an era that saw the introduction of a number of our most common contractions, including don't and won't. But while don't and won't eventually became accepted at all levels of speech and writing, ain't was to receive a barrage of criticism in the 19th century for having no set sequence of words from which it can be contracted and for being a “vulgarism,” that is, a term used by the lower classes, although an't at least had been originally used by the upper classes as well. At the same time ain't's uses were multiplying to include has not, have not, and is not, by influence of forms like ha'n't and i'n't. It may be that these extended uses helped fuel the negative reaction. Whatever the case, criticism of ain't by usage commentators and teachers has not subsided, and the use of ain't is often regarded as a sign of ignorance. ·But despite all the attempts to ban it, ain't continues to enjoy extensive use in speech. Even educated and upper-class speakers see no substitute in folksy expressions such as Say it ain't so and You ain't seen nothin' yet. ·The stigmatization of ain't leaves us with no happy alternative for use in first-person questions. The widely used aren't I? though illogical, was found acceptable for use in speech by a majority of the Usage Panel in an earlier survey, but in writing there is no acceptable substitute for the stilted am I not?

Wow... never knew it dated back to the 1700s. :shock:

John, do you (the English Teacher) use 'Ain't' during your discourse with your students?

 

[Corry]

How many people here do use the word ain't?? I do.

 

[terri]

How many people here do use the word ain't?? I do.

That's personal, so I ain't gonna answer. :green to:

 

[mentos_007]

I ain't gonna answer too too complicated your grammar is

 

[MDowdey]

I ain't gonna answer too too complicated your grammar is

i aint sayin nuthin...

 

[Sharkbait]

John, do you (the English Teacher) use 'Ain't' during your discourse with your students?

Never. Don't get me wrong, I don't go around speaking in Proper Written English all the time, but I avoid most slang, even in everyday speech, and especially around the kids.

 

[danalec99]

John, do you (the English Teacher) use 'Ain't' during your discourse with your students?

Never. Don't get me wrong, I don't go around speaking in Proper Written English all the time, but I avoid most slang, even in everyday speech, and especially around the kids.

I figured .

 

[Walt]

Nice piece of work, eh?

 

[Sharkbait]

John, do you (the English Teacher) use 'Ain't' during your discourse with your students?

Never. Don't get me wrong, I don't go around speaking in Proper Written English all the time, but I avoid most slang, even in everyday speech, and especially around the kids.

I figured .

Yeah yeah yeah. I don't sound like an English teacher when I talk, though. And I never correct people's grammar when I'm speaking to them.

 

[danalec99]

John, do you (the English Teacher) use 'Ain't' during your discourse with your students?

Never. Don't get me wrong, I don't go around speaking in Proper Written English all the time, but I avoid most slang, even in everyday speech, and especially around the kids.

I figured .

Yeah yeah yeah. I don't sound like an English teacher when I talk, though. And I never correct people's grammar when I'm speaking to them.

People who were born to an English speaking parents/American schooling would have bad grammar? :scratch:

 

[Sharkbait]

John, do you (the English Teacher) use 'Ain't' during your discourse with your students?

Never. Don't get me wrong, I don't go around speaking in Proper Written English all the time, but I avoid most slang, even in everyday speech, and especially around the kids.

I figured .

Yeah yeah yeah. I don't sound like an English teacher when I talk, though. And I never correct people's grammar when I'm speaking to them.

People who were born to an English speaking parents/American schooling would have bad grammar? :scratch:

You have no idea how badly native English speakers can butcher this language. In school, students study English for all 13 years of their education, and still many have horrendous grammar afterwards. There are adults that make 4th grade grammar mistakes.