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Common English Contractions
Contractions are words that are made by shortening and combining two words and replacing certain letters with an apostrophe (‘).
Contractions (I’m, you’re) are commonly used in everyday speech and informal writing because they make speaking and writing that little bit faster, easier and more natural sounding. They are (they’re) an essential part of understanding English and speaking fluently.
Contractions are not (aren’t) usually appropriate in very formal writing.
Here is a list of the most common English contractions together with some example sentences.
AM/ARE
I am – I’m
I’m hungry.
You are – You’re
You’re welcome.
We are – We’re
We’re going shopping.
They are – They’re
They’re not here yet.
Who are – Who’re
Who’re those people?
HAVE
I have – I’ve
I’ve never been to Hawai.
You have – You’ve
You’ve forgotten something.
We have – We’ve
We’ve been here before.
They have – They’ve
They’ve closed the store.
Could have – Could’ve
He could’ve passed the test if he studied harder.
Would have – Would’ve
She would’ve been the champion if she won the last match.
Should have – Should’ve
I should’ve asked her when I had the chance.
Might have – Might’ve
Who have – Who’ve
There have – There’ve
IS, HAS
He is/has – He’s
He’s been living there for five years.
She is/has – She’s
She’s the one I was talking about.
It is/has – It’s
What is/has – What’s
What’s that in his hand?
That is/Has – That’s
Who is/has – Who’s
Who’s going to tell him?
There is/has – There’s
Here is/has – Here’s
Here’s the information you asked for.
One is/has – One’s
WILL (or SHALL)
I will – I’ll
I’ll be on an aeroplane this time tomorrow.
You will – You’ll
I am sure you’ll be fine.
She will – She’ll
She’ll meet us there tomorrow.
He will – He’ll
He’ll never finish the race at this rate.
It will – It’ll
It’ll probably rain tomorrow.
We will – We’ll
They will – They’ll
They’ll arrive at around three o’clock.
That will – That’ll
There will – There’ll
This will – This’ll
What will – What’ll
I wonder what’ll happen.
Who will – Who’ll
Who’ll be the one to break the bad news?
WOULD, HAD
I would/had – I’d
I’d only been there one time before.
You would/had – You’d
He would/had – He’d
She would/had – She’d
We would/had – We’d
They would/had – They’d
It would/had – It’d
It’d be a great day if it was not raining.
There would/had – There’d
What would/had – What’d
Who would/had – Who’d
Who’d be crazy enough to attempt that?
That would/had – That’d
US
Let us – Let’s
Let’s go for a walk.
NOT
Cannot – Can’t
I can’t eat anymore.
Do not – Don’t
I don’t want to.
Is not – Isn’t
It isn’t what you think it is.
Will not – Won’t
I won’t be there tomorrow.
Should not – Shouldn’t
We shouldn’t have been here.
Could not – Couldn’t
Would not – Wouldn’t
Are not – Aren’t
Does not – Doesn’t
Was not – Wasn’t
The dog wasn’t in the kennel.
Were not – Weren’t
Has not – Hasn’t
She hasn’t seen the movie yet.
Have not – Haven’t
Had not – Hadn’t
Must not – Mustn’t
You mustn’t do that again.
Did not – Didn’t
Might not – Mightn’t
Need not – Needn’t
You needn’t bother coming.
Here is a useful image that summarises some of the most common English contractions. Feel free to save it so you can study or look them up for quick reference.
Note:
The contraction of will not is a little different from the other contractions. It doesn’t follow the same pattern and becomes willn’t; instead, it is contracted to won’t.
The reason is that won’t is based on a much older form of the word will. Even though we use will now, we kept the contraction of the old word; probably because willn’t is a little tricky to pronounce compared to won’t.
Now that you’ve learnt and hopefully memorised some of the most common English contractions, practice using them by writing a sentence below.
