LoginContractions
You might wonder what the difference between formal and informal styles is. One of the elements that can make your writings informal is using contractions.
What Are Contractions?
Contractions are shortened forms of words, where two words are combined and some letters are removed.
How to Make Contractions?
To make contractions, a single apostrophe is used in place of the removed letter.
When To Use Contractions?
Contractions are used in different contexts. Here are some of the main ones:
Contracted 'To Be' Verbs
Negative Auxiliaries and Modals
'Not' is used to make verbs negative. To use a contracted form of the negative verb, the letter 'o' is removed and an apostrophe is used in its place. This can be done with both modal and auxiliary verbs.
| Full form | Contracted form |
|---|---|
| Are not | Aren't |
| Is not | Isn't |
| Was not | Wasn't |
| Were not | Weren't |
| Do not/Does not | Don't/Doesn't |
| Did not | Didn't |
| Have not/Has not | Haven't/Hasn't |
| Had not | Hadn't |
Warning!
To use the contracted form of 'I am not', only the 'to be' verb can be contracted, not the negative maker. So the contracted form will be 'I'm not' instead of 'I amn't'.
Modal verbs are also made negative by using 'not'. Like auxiliaries, they can be contracted by removing the letter 'o' from 'not'. For example:
She
He
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