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190+ Spoken English Contractions

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Showing 192 of 192 contractions
Informal & SlangAmerican

gonna

/ˈɡənə/

= going to

"I'm gonna grab some coffee before class."

★ High Frequency
Informal & SlangAmerican

wanna

/ˈwɑnə/

= want to

"Do you wanna come along with us?"

★ High Frequency
Informal & SlangAmerican

gotta

/ˈɡɑtə/

= got to

"I've gotta finish this report tonight."

★ High Frequency
Informal & SlangAmerican

tryna

/ˈtraɪnə/

= trying to

"I'm tryna get some sleep here."

★ High Frequency
Informal & SlangBoth

dunno

/dəˈnoʊ/

= don't know

"I dunno where my keys went."

★ High Frequency
Informal & SlangBoth

lemme

/ˈlɛmi/

= let me

"Lemme help you with those heavy bags."

★ High Frequency
Informal & SlangBoth

gimme

/ˈɡɪmi/

= give me

"Gimme five minutes to wrap this up."

★ High Frequency
Informal & SlangAmerican

kinda

/ˈkaɪndə/

= kind of

"It's kinda chilly outside today."

★ High Frequency
Informal & SlangAmerican

sorta

/ˈsɔrtə/

= sort of

"I sorta expected this to happen."

★ High Frequency
Informal & SlangAmerican

lotta

/ˈlɑtə/

= lot of

"There were a lotta people at the concert."

Informal & SlangAmerican

outta

/ˈaʊtə/

= out of

"We are completely outta milk."

Informal & SlangAmerican

whatcha

/ˈwɑtʃə/

= what are you

"Whatcha thinking about right now?"

★ High Frequency
Informal & SlangAmerican

betcha

/ˈbɛtʃə/

= bet you

"I betcha can't eat just one."

Informal & SlangAmerican

gotcha

/ˈɡɑtʃə/

= got you

"Ah, gotcha! That makes total sense."

★ High Frequency
Informal & SlangBoth

coulda

/ˈkʊdə/

= could have

"You coulda warned me earlier!"

Informal & SlangBoth

shoulda

/ˈʃʊdə/

= should have

"I shoulda listened to your advice."

Informal & SlangBoth

woulda

/ˈwʊdə/

= would have

"I woulda called, but my battery died."

Informal & SlangBoth

musta

/ˈmʌstə/

= must have

"He musta left his wallet on the counter."

Informal & SlangBoth

mighta

/ˈmaɪtə/

= might have

"She mighta taken the earlier train."

Informal & SlangAmerican

hafta

/ˈhæftə/

= have to

"Do you hafta leave so soon?"

Informal & SlangAmerican

hasta

/ˈhæstə/

= has to

"Somebody hasta step up and fix this."

Informal & SlangBritish

cuppa

/ˈkʌpə/

= cup of

"Fancy a cuppa tea?"

★ High Frequency
Informal & SlangBoth

c'mon

/kəˈmɑn/

= come on

"C'mon, we don't have all day!"

Informal & SlangBoth

'cause

/kəz/

= because

"I stayed home 'cause it was raining."

Informal & SlangAmerican

doncha

/ˈdoʊntʃə/

= don't you

"Doncha want to see the finale?"

Informal & SlangAmerican

didja

/ˈdɪdʒə/

= did you

"Didja hear what happened yesterday?"

Informal & SlangAmerican

wouldja

/ˈwʊdʒə/

= would you

"Wouldja pass me the salt please?"

Informal & SlangAmerican

couldja

/ˈkʊdʒə/

= could you

"Couldja take a look at this document?"

Informal & SlangAmerican

howdja

/ˈhaʊdʒə/

= how did you

"Howdja pull that off so fast?"

Informal & SlangAmerican

whaddya

/ˈwɑdiə/

= what do you

"Whaddya think about this idea?"

★ High Frequency
Colloquial & RegionalAmerican

y'all

/jɔːl/

= you all

"Are y'all heading over to dinner now?"

★ High Frequency
Colloquial & RegionalAmerican

all y'all

/ɔːl jɔːl/

= all of you

"All y'all need to listen carefully."

Colloquial & RegionalAmerican

y'all'd

/ˈjɔːld/

= you all would

"Y'all'd love this new restaurant downtown."

Colloquial & RegionalAmerican

y'all've

/ˈjɔːləv/

= you all have

"Y'all've been working so hard today."

Colloquial & RegionalBritish

innit

/ˈɪnɪt/

= isn't it

"It's proper freezing out here, innit?"

★ High Frequency
Colloquial & RegionalBoth

ain't

/eɪnt/

= am not / is not / are not

"That ain't what I told you."

★ High Frequency
Colloquial & RegionalAmerican

finna

/ˈfɪnə/

= fixing to

"I'm finna leave in a minute."

Colloquial & RegionalAmerican

imma

/ˈɪmə/

= I am going to

"Imma tell you a secret."

★ High Frequency
Colloquial & RegionalAmerican

boutta

/ˈbaʊtə/

= about to

"We boutta start the presentation."

Colloquial & RegionalBritish

s'pose

/spoʊz/

= suppose

"I s'pose we could meet tomorrow instead."

Colloquial & RegionalBoth

'sup

/sʌp/

= what is up

"'Sup bro, haven't seen you all week."

Colloquial & RegionalBoth

whassup

/wəˈsʌp/

= what is up

"Whassup with the website server?"

Colloquial & RegionalBoth

tell'em

/ˈtɛləm/

= tell them

"Just tell'em we'll be 10 minutes late."

Colloquial & RegionalBoth

see'em

/ˈsiəm/

= see them

"Can you see'em standing by the stage?"

Colloquial & RegionalAmerican

lookit

/ˈlʊkɪt/

= look at it

"Lookit that sunset over the ocean!"

Negative & ModalBoth

don't

/doʊnt/

= do not

"Please don't hesitate to reach out."

★ High Frequency
Negative & ModalBoth

doesn't

/ˈdʌzənt/

= does not

"It doesn't matter what time we arrive."

★ High Frequency
Negative & ModalBoth

didn't

/ˈdɪdənt/

= did not

"I didn't realize the meeting was today."

★ High Frequency
Negative & ModalBoth

won't

/woʊnt/

= will not

"I won't be able to attend tomorrow."

★ High Frequency
Negative & ModalBoth

can't

/kænt/

= cannot

"We can't solve this without accurate data."

★ High Frequency
Negative & ModalBoth

couldn't

/ˈkʊdənt/

= could not

"She couldn't believe her eyes."

Negative & ModalBoth

wouldn't

/ˈwʊdənt/

= would not

"I wouldn't recommend skipping breakfast."

Negative & ModalBoth

shouldn't

/ˈʃʊdənt/

= should not

"You shouldn't work overtime on weekends."

Negative & ModalBoth

isn't

/ˈɪzənt/

= is not

"Isn't that the new designer over there?"

Negative & ModalBoth

aren't

/ɑrnt/

= are not

"They aren't ready for the demonstration."

Negative & ModalBoth

wasn't

/ˈwʌzənt/

= was not

"It wasn't as difficult as we feared."

Negative & ModalBoth

weren't

/wɜrnt/

= were not

"We weren't notified about the schedule shift."

Negative & ModalBoth

haven't

/ˈhævənt/

= have not

"I haven't heard back from support yet."

Negative & ModalBoth

hasn't

/ˈhæzənt/

= has not

"The package hasn't arrived yet."

Negative & ModalBoth

hadn't

/ˈhædənt/

= had not

"They hadn't encountered this issue before."

Negative & ModalBritish

mustn't

/ˈmʌsənt/

= must not

"You mustn't touch the glass casing."

Negative & ModalBritish

needn't

/ˈnidənt/

= need not

"You needn't worry about paying for lunch."

Negative & ModalBritish

shan't

/ʃɑːnt/

= shall not

"I shan't be long in the grocery store."

Negative & ModalBritish

daren't

/ˈdɛərənt/

= dare not

"I daren't ask what happened to the cake."

Negative & ModalBritish

mayn't

/ˈmeɪənt/

= may not

"Mayn't we stay up a little longer?"

Pronouns & VerbsBoth

I'm

/aɪm/

= I am

"I'm practicing pronunciation every single day."

★ High Frequency
Pronouns & VerbsBoth

you're

/jʊr/

= you are

"You're making incredible progress this week."

★ High Frequency
Pronouns & VerbsBoth

he's

/hiz/

= he is / he has

"He's our lead audio speech engineer."

★ High Frequency
Pronouns & VerbsBoth

she's

/ʃiz/

= she is / she has

"She's been studying English for five years."

★ High Frequency
Pronouns & VerbsBoth

it's

/ɪts/

= it is / it has

"It's time to test your pronunciation score."

★ High Frequency
Pronouns & VerbsBoth

we're

/wɪr/

= we are

"We're launching brand new accents soon."

★ High Frequency
Pronouns & VerbsBoth

they're

/ðɛr/

= they are

"They're listening closely to the studio audio."

★ High Frequency
Pronouns & VerbsBoth

that's

/ðæts/

= that is / that has

"That's exactly what I wanted to hear."

★ High Frequency
Pronouns & VerbsBoth

what's

/wɑts/

= what is / what has

"What's the best way to practice the schwa?"

★ High Frequency
Pronouns & VerbsBoth

who's

/huz/

= who is / who has

"Who's next in the practice rotation?"

Pronouns & VerbsBoth

where's

/wɛrz/

= where is / where has

"Where's the nearest subway entrance?"

Pronouns & VerbsBoth

when's

/wɛnz/

= when is / when has

"When's the next session starting?"

Pronouns & VerbsBoth

why's

/waɪz/

= why is / why has

"Why's the audio meter flashing yellow?"

Pronouns & VerbsBoth

how's

/haʊz/

= how is / how has

"How's your pronunciation practice going?"

Pronouns & VerbsBoth

there's

/ðɛrz/

= there is / there has

"There's no better feeling than fluent speech."

★ High Frequency
Pronouns & VerbsBoth

here's

/hɪrz/

= here is

"Here's your weekly pronunciation breakdown."

Pronouns & VerbsBoth

let's

/lɛts/

= let us

"Let's review the vowel sounds together."

★ High Frequency
Pronouns & VerbsBoth

someone's

/ˈsʌmwʌnz/

= someone is / someone has

"Someone's knocking on the front door."

Pronouns & VerbsBoth

everybody's

/ˈɛvribɑdiz/

= everybody is / everybody has

"Everybody's invited to join the webinar."

Pronouns & VerbsBoth

nobody's

/ˈnoʊbɑdiz/

= nobody is / nobody has

"Nobody's perfect on day one."

Future & ConditionalBoth

I'll

/aɪl/

= I will / I shall

"I'll see you at the workshop tomorrow."

★ High Frequency
Future & ConditionalBoth

you'll

/juːl/

= you will

"You'll notice big changes within two weeks."

★ High Frequency
Future & ConditionalBoth

he'll

/hil/

= he will

"He'll deliver the keynote address."

Future & ConditionalBoth

she'll

/ʃil/

= she will

"She'll guide you through the initial evaluation."

Future & ConditionalBoth

it'll

/ˈɪtəl/

= it will

"It'll take about five minutes to complete."

★ High Frequency
Future & ConditionalBoth

we'll

/wil/

= we will / we shall

"We'll analyze every single syllable."

★ High Frequency
Future & ConditionalBoth

they'll

/ðeɪl/

= they will

"They'll send your assessment score via email."

Future & ConditionalBoth

that'll

/ˈðætəl/

= that will

"That'll be ten dollars, please."

Future & ConditionalBoth

there'll

/ˈðɛrəl/

= there will

"There'll be plenty of time to ask questions."

Future & ConditionalBoth

who'll

/hul/

= who will

"Who'll step forward to try the sentence first?"

Future & ConditionalBoth

what'll

/ˈwɑtəl/

= what will

"What'll happen if we miss the deadline?"

Future & ConditionalBoth

I'd

/aɪd/

= I would / I had

"I'd love to visit London this autumn."

★ High Frequency
Future & ConditionalBoth

you'd

/jud/

= you would / you had

"You'd be amazed how quickly your ear adapts."

Future & ConditionalBoth

he'd

/hid/

= he would / he had

"He'd never tried shadowing before."

Future & ConditionalBoth

she'd

/ʃid/

= she would / she had

"She'd rather practice with British voices."

Future & ConditionalBoth

it'd

/ˈɪtəd/

= it would / it had

"It'd be better to record in a quiet room."

Future & ConditionalBoth

we'd

/wid/

= we would / we had

"We'd already prepared the presentation slides."

Future & ConditionalBoth

they'd

/ðeɪd/

= they would / they had

"They'd never heard native contractions taught this clearly."

Future & ConditionalBoth

that'd

/ˈðætəd/

= that would

"That'd be wonderful, thank you!"

Future & ConditionalBoth

there'd

/ˈðɛrəd/

= there would / there had

"There'd be less confusion if everyone read the manual."

Future & ConditionalBoth

who'd

/hud/

= who would / who had

"Who'd have guessed English has 190+ contractions?"

Future & ConditionalBoth

how'd

/haʊd/

= how did / how would

"How'd you manage to score 98% on your test?"

Future & ConditionalBoth

why'd

/waɪd/

= why did / why would

"Why'd you choose the British accent first?"

Future & ConditionalBoth

when'd

/wɛnd/

= when did

"When'd the lecture end?"

Future & ConditionalBoth

where'd

/wɛrd/

= where did

"Where'd you find this pronunciation technique?"

Pronouns & VerbsBoth

I've

/aɪv/

= I have

"I've practiced every day this month."

★ High Frequency
Pronouns & VerbsBoth

you've

/juv/

= you have

"You've made significant progress."

★ High Frequency
Pronouns & VerbsBoth

we've

/wiv/

= we have

"We've completed the first five modules."

★ High Frequency
Pronouns & VerbsBoth

they've

/ðeɪv/

= they have

"They've unlocked all eight achievements."

Pronouns & VerbsBoth

who've

/huv/

= who have

"Those who've tried shadowing love the results."

Pronouns & VerbsBoth

what've

/ˈwɑtəv/

= what have

"What've you been up to all morning?"

Negative & ModalBoth

could've

/ˈkʊdəv/

= could have

"We could've reached 100% with one more practice."

Negative & ModalBoth

should've

/ˈʃʊdəv/

= should have

"I should've focused on consonant clusters earlier."

★ High Frequency
Negative & ModalBoth

would've

/ˈwʊdəv/

= would have

"He would've passed if he'd practiced daily."

★ High Frequency
Negative & ModalBoth

might've

/ˈmaɪtəv/

= might have

"They might've overlooked the silent letters."

Negative & ModalBoth

must've

/ˈmʌstəv/

= must have

"You must've worked on this for hours."

Negative & ModalBoth

couldn't've

/ˈkʊdəntəv/

= could not have

"I couldn't've done it without AccentCoach."

Negative & ModalBoth

shouldn't've

/ˈʃʊdəntəv/

= should not have

"We shouldn't've waited so long to start."

Negative & ModalBoth

wouldn't've

/ˈwʊdəntəv/

= would not have

"She wouldn't've known unless you told her."

Future & ConditionalBoth

I'd've

/ˈaɪdəv/

= I would have

"I'd've joined you if my phone was charged."

Future & ConditionalBoth

you'd've

/ˈjudəv/

= you would have

"You'd've loved the pronunciation demo."

Future & ConditionalBoth

he'd've

/ˈhidəv/

= he would have

"He'd've scored higher with better pacing."

Future & ConditionalBoth

she'd've

/ˈʃidəv/

= she would have

"She'd've aced the test with three days of practice."

Future & ConditionalBoth

we'd've

/ˈwidəv/

= we would have

"We'd've finished earlier if we started together."

Future & ConditionalBoth

they'd've

/ˈðeɪdəv/

= they would have

"They'd've won the trophy with their fluent speech."

Informal & SlangAmerican

oughta

/ˈɔtə/

= ought to

"You oughta know this by now."

Informal & SlangAmerican

useta

/ˈjustə/

= used to

"I useta struggle with the th sound."

Informal & SlangAmerican

supposeta

/səˈpoʊstə/

= supposed to

"We're supposeta meet them at six."

Informal & SlangBoth

gonna be

/ˈɡənə bi/

= going to be

"It's gonna be an amazing presentation."

Informal & SlangBoth

wanna be

/ˈwɑnə bi/

= want to be

"I wanna be fluent by next summer."

Informal & SlangBoth

gotta be

/ˈɡɑtə bi/

= got to be

"This gotta be the cleanest app design."

Informal & SlangBoth

c'mere

/kəˈmɪr/

= come here

"C'mere, check out this spectrogram!"

Colloquial & RegionalBoth

g'day

/ɡəˈdeɪ/

= good day

"G'day mate, how's it going?"

Colloquial & RegionalAmerican

ma'am

/mæm/

= madam

"Yes ma'am, right away."

Pronouns & VerbsBoth

o'clock

/əˈklɑk/

= of the clock

"It's already three o'clock."

Colloquial & RegionalBritish

ne'er

/nɛər/

= never

"Ne'er did I see such determination."

Colloquial & RegionalBritish

e'er

/ɛər/

= ever

"More fluent than e'er before."

Colloquial & RegionalBritish

o'er

/oʊər/

= over

"Flying high o'er the mountains."

Colloquial & RegionalBritish

'tis

/tɪz/

= it is

"'Tis a pleasure meeting you."

Colloquial & RegionalBritish

'twas

/twʌz/

= 'twas

"'Twas the night before the exam."

Colloquial & RegionalAmerican

y'all're

/ˈjɔːlər/

= you all are

"Y'all're doing fantastic today."

Informal & SlangBoth

giv'em

/ˈɡɪvəm/

= give them

"Giv'em a big round of applause!"

Informal & SlangBoth

tak'em

/ˈteɪkəm/

= take them

"Tak'em along for the ride."

Informal & SlangBoth

lov'em

/ˈlʌvəm/

= love them

"I just lov'em to pieces."

Informal & SlangBoth

want'em

/ˈwɑntəm/

= want them

"Do you want'em with ice or without?"

Informal & SlangBoth

need'em

/ˈnidəm/

= need them

"I need'em on my desk by noon."

Informal & SlangBoth

ask'em

/ˈæskəm/

= ask them

"Go ahead and ask'em yourself."

Informal & SlangAmerican

whatchadoin

/ˈwɑtʃəˌduɪŋ/

= what are you doing

"Whatchadoin this Friday evening?"

Informal & SlangAmerican

dunno yet

/dəˈnoʊ jɛt/

= do not know yet

"I dunno yet, let me check my calendar."

Colloquial & RegionalBoth

howzit

/ˈhaʊzɪt/

= how is it

"Howzit going with the new client?"

Informal & SlangAmerican

where'dja

/ˈwɛərdʒə/

= where did you

"Where'dja learn how to speak so fluently?"

Informal & SlangAmerican

what'dja

/ˈwʌtdʒə/

= what did you

"What'dja say to him?"

Informal & SlangAmerican

whydja

/ˈwaɪdʒə/

= why did you

"Whydja leave the party so early?"

Informal & SlangBoth

somethin'

/ˈsʌmθɪn/

= something

"There's somethin' in the air tonight."

Informal & SlangBoth

nothin'

/ˈnʌθɪn/

= nothing

"It was nothin' at all, happy to help!"

Informal & SlangBoth

everythin'

/ˈɛvriθɪn/

= everything

"Everythin' is going according to schedule."

Informal & SlangBoth

mornin'

/ˈmɔrnɪn/

= morning

"Mornin' everyone! Ready for practice?"

Informal & SlangBoth

evenin'

/ˈivnɪn/

= evening

"Good evenin' ladies and gentlemen."

Colloquial & RegionalAmerican

fixin' to

/ˈfɪksɪn tə/

= fixing to

"I'm fixin' to start cooking dinner."

Informal & SlangBoth

gimme a sec

/ˈɡɪmi ə sɛk/

= give me a second

"Gimme a sec to open the application."

Informal & SlangBoth

wait a sec

/weɪt ə sɛk/

= wait a second

"Wait a sec, did you save the file?"

Informal & SlangBoth

hold up

/hoʊld ʌp/

= hold on

"Hold up, let's re-record that line."

Informal & SlangBoth

g'night

/ɡəˈnaɪt/

= good night

"G'night all, see you bright and early!"

Pronouns & VerbsBritish

d'you

/djuː/

= do you

"D'you mind if I sit here?"

Colloquial & RegionalBritish

d'ye

/djiː/

= do you (archaic/Irish)

"D'ye understand what I mean?"

Future & ConditionalBoth

who'd've

/ˈhudəv/

= who would have

"Who'd've thought learning pronunciation could be fun?"

Future & ConditionalBoth

what'd've

/ˈwɑtədəv/

= what would have

"What'd've happened if you didn't practice?"

Future & ConditionalBoth

there'd've

/ˈðɛrədəv/

= there would have

"There'd've been no misunderstanding."

Future & ConditionalBoth

how'd've

/ˈhaʊdəv/

= how would have

"How'd've they reacted to the news?"

Colloquial & RegionalAmerican

y'all'd've

/ˈjɔːldəv/

= you all would have

"Y'all'd've loved the keynote speech."

Negative & ModalBritish

she'dn't

/ˈʃidənt/

= she had not

"She'dn't seen the final slide yet."

Negative & ModalBritish

he'dn't

/ˈhidənt/

= he had not

"He'dn't arrived at the terminal yet."

Negative & ModalBritish

we'dn't

/ˈwidənt/

= we had not

"We'dn't anticipated such rapid growth."

Negative & ModalBritish

they'dn't

/ˈðeɪdənt/

= they had not

"They'dn't completed the homework."

Negative & ModalBritish

it'dn't

/ˈɪtədənt/

= it had not

"It'dn't crossed my mind until now."

Informal & SlangBoth

c'mon in

/kəˈmɑn ɪn/

= come on in

"C'mon in, make yourself at home!"

Informal & SlangBoth

lemme see

/ˈlɛmi si/

= let me see

"Lemme see that score breakdown again."

Informal & SlangBoth

gimme that

/ˈɡɪmi ðæt/

= give me that

"Gimme that microphone, I want to try!"

Informal & SlangAmerican

whatcha got

/ˈwɑtʃə ɡɑt/

= what have you got

"Whatcha got in the backpack?"

Informal & SlangBoth

dunno why

/dəˈnoʊ waɪ/

= don't know why

"I dunno why this vowel felt tricky at first."

Informal & SlangAmerican

tryna be

/ˈtraɪnə bi/

= trying to be

"He's just tryna be helpful."

Informal & SlangBoth

gotta go

/ˈɡɑtə ɡoʊ/

= got to go

"Sorry guys, I really gotta go catch my train."

Informal & SlangBoth

wanna know

/ˈwɑnə noʊ/

= want to know

"Do you really wanna know the score?"

Informal & SlangBoth

gonna win

/ˈɡənə wɪn/

= going to win

"With this pronunciation, you're gonna win them over."

Pronouns & VerbsBoth

all's

/ɔːlz/

= all is / all that is

"All's well that ends well."

Pronouns & VerbsBoth

where've

/ˈwɛərəv/

= where have

"Where've you been all afternoon?"

Pronouns & VerbsBoth

how've

/ˈhaʊəv/

= how have

"How've you been feeling this semester?"

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