English Vocabulary for learners
INFORMAL CONTRACTIONS
Contractions in casual conversations with an example of use.
Informal contractions are shortened forms of words and phrases in English
sometimes used in casual conversations.
They are like slang - a very informal way of speaking.
They are generally used only in spoken English, but can also be found in some informal writing like text messages, emails, and social media. We spell the contractions the way they sound, and different spellings can be found.
Listed below are some common informal contractions with an example of use.
It must be remembered that these contractions are not "correct " English.
The list is merely an attempt to help learners understand what they may hear in very informal conversations or in the lyrics of popular songs.
They are generally used only in spoken English, but can also be found in some informal writing like text messages, emails, and social media. We spell the contractions the way they sound, and different spellings can be found.
Listed below are some common informal contractions with an example of use.
It must be remembered that these contractions are not "correct " English.
The list is merely an attempt to help learners understand what they may hear in very informal conversations or in the lyrics of popular songs.
| Sound | Contraction of | Example |
|---|---|---|
| COULDA | Could have | You coulda taken the bus. |
| DUNNO | Don't know | Where's John? I dunno. |
| GIMME | Give me | Could you gimme a hand with this? |
| GONNA | Going to | We're all gonna go to the beach. |
| GOTTA | Got to | I've gotta leave early today. |
| HAFTA | Have to | I hafta pick up the kids from school. |
| LEMME | Let me | Here, lemme help you with that. |
| LOTTA | Lot of | There's still a lotta work to be done. |
| KINDA | Kind of | It's kinda chilly outside today. |
| SHOULDA | Should have | You shoulda warned me about the dog. |
| WANNA | Want to | Do you wanna see the photographs? |
| WHA-DI-YA | What do you | Wha-di-ya think of this? |
| WHATCHA | What are you | Wha-tcha gonna do now? |
| WOULDA | Would have | I woulda come earlier if I'd known. |