ain't

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Stuffing in good music to go with the visuals ain't bad at all too.

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Definitions (3)

Toggle American Heritage definitions American Heritage Dictionary (3)

  1. Nonstandard Contraction of am not.
  2. Nonstandard Used also as a contraction for are not, is not, has not, and have not.
  3. 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?

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Examples (50)

  • I desperately wanted to participate, but being 12 hours off the flight from South Africa it just ain't going to happen I'm afraid. —  Waving or Drowning?
  • His chilled, creepy voice breaks out: "There was a black swan outside of the palace, it was appointed by the king / And people took it as a sign that he needed more time / But you said, 'I ain't afraid of no blackbird.'" —  The L Magazine - New York City's Local Event and Arts & Culture Guide
  • Unfortunately, Microsoft ain't telling, and it's not sharing the financial details of the deal either, but at the time it was rumoured that $35m was the offered price. —  Mirror.co.uk - News
  • I give Ainge props for brutal honesty, but he has made it very clear: Rondo will NOT be the leader of this team, Rondo's up for Elite money soon -- the Celts ain't giving him that. —  Boston.com Most Popular
  • Because, if you think the Liberty Bell is irreparably damaged … well, you ain't seen nothin 'yet. —  POLITICO MAFIOSO
 

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