{"id":23345,"date":"2023-12-22T14:43:39","date_gmt":"2023-12-22T19:43:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.espressoenglish.net\/?p=23345"},"modified":"2024-07-16T14:19:34","modified_gmt":"2024-07-16T19:19:34","slug":"50-contractions-in-english-list-examples","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.espressoenglish.net\/50-contractions-in-english-list-examples\/","title":{"rendered":"50+ Contractions in English: List &#038; Examples"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><center><iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/nHycUSNzzuU?si=L_CpsUxHsYsyl7Pj?rel=0\" title=\"YouTube video player\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/center><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><a class=\"elementor-button large green rounded\" href=\"https:\/\/espressoenglish.lpages.co\/free-pdf-50-contractions-in-english\/\"><strong>Download lesson PDF<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Contractions combine two words into a short form with an apostrophe to replace the missing letter or letters &#8211; for example,<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>I am<\/strong> becomes<strong> I&#8217;m<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>could not<\/strong> becomes <strong>couldn&#8217;t<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>&#8230;and many more that you&#8217;ll learn in the contractions list below!<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Contractions are extremely common in spoken English and informal written English, and today you&#8217;re going to learn 50 of them &#8211; yes, we do have that many contractions in the English language!<\/p>\n<p>Make sure to <a href=\"https:\/\/espressoenglish.lpages.co\/free-pdf-50-contractions-in-english\/\"><strong>download the free PDF guide<\/strong><\/a> to this lesson so you can save the full contractions list and all the example sentences.<\/p>\n<h3>Contractions with NOT<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>are not &#8211; <strong>aren&#8217;t<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>cannot &#8211; <strong>can&#8217;t<\/strong><br \/>\n<em>(note that cannot is the only one of these that\u2019s a single word, without a space between can and not)<\/em><\/li>\n<li>could not &#8211; <strong>couldn&#8217;t<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>did not &#8211; <strong>didn&#8217;t<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>do not &#8211; <strong>don&#8217;t<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>does not &#8211; <strong>doesn&#8217;t<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>had not &#8211; <strong>hadn&#8217;t<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>has not &#8211; <strong>hasn\u2019t<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>have not &#8211; <strong>haven&#8217;t<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>is not &#8211; <strong>isn&#8217;t<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>must not &#8211; <strong>mustn&#8217;t<\/strong> <em>(not common in American English)<\/em><\/li>\n<li>should not &#8211; <strong>shouldn&#8217;t<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>was not &#8211; <strong>wasn&#8217;t<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>were not &#8211; <strong>weren&#8217;t<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>will not &#8211; <strong>won&#8217;t<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>would not &#8211; <strong>wouldn&#8217;t<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>A few example sentences:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>I <strong>didn\u2019t<\/strong> go to the gym today.<\/li>\n<li>We <strong>haven\u2019t<\/strong> finished the project yet.<\/li>\n<li>You <strong>shouldn\u2019t<\/strong> drive so fast.<\/li>\n<li>He <strong>wasn\u2019t<\/strong> at the party.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>One thing you might notice when I say these sentences is that the final \u201ct\u201d almost disappears. I don\u2019t say \u201cHe wasn\u2019t at the party,\u201d it sounds more like <em>\u201cHe wasn\u2019at the party.\u201d<\/em> This is just something that happens when speaking naturally, and I want you to be aware of it when you\u2019re listening to native English speakers talking fast.<\/p>\n<p>Contractions with &#8220;not&#8221; are often used in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.espressoenglish.net\/negative-questions-and-question-tags\/\">tag questions:<\/a><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>\u00a0You&#8217;re tired,\u00a0<strong>aren&#8217;t\u00a0<\/strong>you?<\/li>\n<li>That was fun,\u00a0<strong>wasn&#8217;t\u00a0<\/strong>it?<\/li>\n<li>He lives there,\u00a0<strong>doesn&#8217;t\u00a0<\/strong>he?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Contractions with BE (am &#8211; is &#8211; are)<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>I am &#8211; <strong>I\u2019m<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>he is &#8211; <strong>he\u2019s<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>she is &#8211; <strong>she\u2019s<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>it is &#8211; <strong>it\u2019s<\/strong><strong><br \/>\n<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>John is &#8211; <strong>John\u2019s<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>you are &#8211; <strong>you&#8217;re<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>we are &#8211; <strong>we&#8217;re<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>they are &#8211; <strong>they&#8217;re<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Remember: <strong>its\u00a0<\/strong>without an apostrophe is a possessive pronoun, ex. The car crashed because its brakes failed. <strong>It&#8217;s\u00a0<\/strong>with an apostrophe is the short form of &#8220;it is&#8221; or &#8220;it has&#8221; (which you&#8217;ll see in the next section).<\/p>\n<p>And some examples:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>I\u2019m<\/strong> hungry.<\/li>\n<li><strong>It\u2019s<\/strong> raining.<\/li>\n<li><strong>She\u2019s<\/strong> good at math.<\/li>\n<li><strong>We\u2019re<\/strong> learning contractions.<\/li>\n<li><strong>They\u2019re<\/strong> from Brazil.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>One thing to be aware of is that <strong>we\u2019re<\/strong> (we are) often sounds like \u201c<strong>were<\/strong>\u201d when speaking fast.<\/p>\n<div class=\"alert\">\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/espressoenglish.lpages.co\/free-pdf-50-contractions-in-english\/\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-23352\" src=\"https:\/\/www.espressoenglish.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/contractions.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"500\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.espressoenglish.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/contractions.png 1000w, https:\/\/www.espressoenglish.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/contractions-300x215.png 300w, https:\/\/www.espressoenglish.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/contractions-768x549.png 768w, https:\/\/www.espressoenglish.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/contractions-211x150.png 211w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><a class=\"elementor-button large green rounded\" href=\"https:\/\/espressoenglish.lpages.co\/free-pdf-50-contractions-in-english\/\"><strong>Download lesson PDF<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<h3>Contractions with HAVE, HAS, and HAD:<\/h3>\n<p><strong>HAVE<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>I have &#8211; <strong>I&#8217;ve<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>you have &#8211; <strong>you&#8217;ve<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>we have &#8211; <strong>we&#8217;ve<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>they have &#8211; <strong>they&#8217;ve<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>should have &#8211;\u00a0<strong>should&#8217;ve<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>could have &#8211; <strong>could&#8217;ve<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>would have &#8211;\u00a0<strong>would&#8217;ve<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Note that the short forms of these modal verbs are <em>always\u00a0<\/em><strong>should&#8217;ve, could&#8217;ve, would&#8217;ve\u00a0<\/strong>and <em>never\u00a0<\/em><strong>should of, could of, would of.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>HAS<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>he has &#8211; <strong>he&#8217;s<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>she has &#8211; <strong>she&#8217;s<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>it has &#8211; <strong>it&#8217;s<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>HAD<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>I had &#8211; <strong>I\u2019d<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>you had &#8211; <strong>you\u2019d<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>he had &#8211; <strong>he\u2019d<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>she had &#8211; <strong>she\u2019d<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>we had &#8211; <strong>we\u2019d<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>they had &#8211; <strong>they\u2019d<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>We use<strong> have\/has<\/strong> in the present perfect tense, as in these examples:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>I\u2019ve<\/strong> finished the book.<\/li>\n<li><strong>You\u2019ve<\/strong> been working hard.<\/li>\n<li><strong>She\u2019s<\/strong> already eaten dinner.<\/li>\n<li><strong>He\u2019s<\/strong> been sick all week.<\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">We\u2019re going to be late &#8211; we <strong>should\u2019ve <\/strong>left earlier.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>We do NOT use the contracted form if &#8220;have\/has\/had&#8221; is the MAIN VERB of the sentence, meaning possession. We only use the contraction when have\/has\/had is acting as a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.espressoenglish.net\/helping-verbs-in-english-list-examples\/\">helping verb.<\/a><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Main verb: I <strong>have\u00a0<\/strong>a dog. (not &#8220;I&#8217;ve a dog&#8221;)<\/li>\n<li>Helping verb: I<strong>&#8216;ve\u00a0<\/strong><strong>adopted\u00a0<\/strong>a dog.<\/li>\n<li>Main verb: He <strong>has<\/strong> an old car.<\/li>\n<li>Helping verb: He&#8217;<strong>s been driving <\/strong>that car for 20 years.<\/li>\n<li>Main verb: We\u00a0<strong>had\u00a0<\/strong>a good time last night.<\/li>\n<li>Helping verb: We helped him because we<strong>&#8216;d promised\u00a0<\/strong>to do so.<\/li>\n<li>Main verb: The pharmacy\u00a0<strong>should have\u00a0<\/strong>that medicine.<\/li>\n<li>Helping verb: You\u00a0<strong>should&#8217;ve apologized\u00a0<\/strong>for being rude.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Also, you might notice that <strong>she\u2019s<\/strong> could be <strong>\u201cshe is\u201d<\/strong> or <strong>\u201cshe has\u201d<\/strong> &#8211; how can you know which one?<\/p>\n<p>Look at the whole sentence.<\/p>\n<p>If it\u2019s followed by an -ING verb or by an adjective or noun, that means \u201cshe is\u201d:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>She\u2019s <\/strong>preparing a lesson.\u00a0<em>(She is preparing)<\/em><\/li>\n<li><strong>She\u2019s<\/strong> a teacher.\u00a0<em>(She is a teacher)<\/em><\/li>\n<li><strong>She\u2019s<\/strong> busy.\u00a0<em>(She is busy)<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>If it\u2019s followed by a past participle, that means \u201cshe has\u201d:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>She\u2019s<\/strong> <strong>told<\/strong> everyone the news.\u00a0<em>(She has told)<\/em><\/li>\n<li><strong>She\u2019s<\/strong> <strong>been<\/strong> planning her vacation.\u00a0<em>(She has been)<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Note: <strong>&#8216;s<\/strong> can also be used in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.espressoenglish.net\/possessives-in-english\/\">possessive nouns<\/a> (John&#8217;s kids, Mary&#8217;s car).<\/p>\n<p>We use contractions with <strong>had<\/strong> in the past perfect tense, as in these examples:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>By the time I arrived, <strong>he\u2019d<\/strong> already left.<\/li>\n<li><strong>We\u2019d<\/strong> been thinking about selling our house, but we changed our minds.<\/li>\n<li>They said <strong>they\u2019d<\/strong> gotten a dog.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-23348\" src=\"https:\/\/www.espressoenglish.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/is-or-has.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"548\" height=\"548\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.espressoenglish.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/is-or-has.jpg 1000w, https:\/\/www.espressoenglish.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/is-or-has-300x300.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.espressoenglish.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/is-or-has-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.espressoenglish.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/is-or-has-768x768.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 548px) 100vw, 548px\" \/><\/p>\n<h3>Contractions with WILL<\/h3>\n<p>A lot of these sound a bit different when spoken fast, as you\u2019ll see in the example sentences)<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>I will &#8211; <strong>I\u2019ll<\/strong> <em>(often sounds like \u201call\u201d)<\/em><\/li>\n<li>you will &#8211; <strong>you\u2019ll<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>he will &#8211; <strong>he\u2019ll<\/strong> (often sounds like \u201chill\u201d)<\/li>\n<li>she will &#8211; <strong>she\u2019ll<\/strong> (often sounds like \u201cshill\u201d)<\/li>\n<li>it will &#8211; <strong>it\u2019ll<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>we will &#8211; <strong>we\u2019ll<\/strong> (often sounds like \u201cwill\u201d)<\/li>\n<li>they&#8217;ll &#8211; <strong>they\u2019ll<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Let\u2019s look at and listen to the examples:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>I\u2019ll<\/strong> get back to you later.<\/li>\n<li>I think <strong>he\u2019ll<\/strong> like the gift.<\/li>\n<li><strong>We\u2019ll<\/strong> be traveling next week.<\/li>\n<li>Talk to Jane &#8211; <strong>she\u2019ll<\/strong> help you set up your account.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Contractions with WOULD<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>I would &#8211; <strong>I\u2019d<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>you would &#8211; <strong>you\u2019d<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>he would &#8211; <strong>he\u2019d<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>she would &#8211; <strong>she\u2019d<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>we would &#8211; <strong>we\u2019d<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>they would &#8211; <strong>they\u2019d<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>For example:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>I\u2019d<\/strong> like to see the dessert menu, please.<\/li>\n<li>If he ate healthier food, <strong>he\u2019d<\/strong> feel better.<\/li>\n<li>When we were kids, <strong>we\u2019d<\/strong> go to the beach every summer.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Again, we have a problem &#8211; <strong>they\u2019d<\/strong> can mean<strong> they had<\/strong> or <strong>they would<\/strong> &#8211; how can you know which one? By looking at what comes after it.<\/p>\n<p><strong>They\u2019d + past participle<\/strong> means \u201cthey had,\u201d and <strong>they\u2019d + base form<\/strong> means \u201cthey would\u201d:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>I wanted to see them, but <strong>they\u2019d<\/strong> already <strong>left<\/strong>.\u00a0<em>(they had already left)<\/em><\/li>\n<li>They told the host <strong>they\u2019d<\/strong> <strong>leave<\/strong> early.\u00a0<em>(they would leave)<\/em><\/li>\n<li>He was disappointed because <strong>he\u2019d<\/strong> <strong>gotten<\/strong> a bad grade on the test.\u00a0<em>(he had gotten)<\/em><\/li>\n<li>If he studied more, <strong>he\u2019d get<\/strong> better grades.\u00a0<em>(he would get)<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-23347\" src=\"https:\/\/www.espressoenglish.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/had-or-would.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"541\" height=\"541\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.espressoenglish.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/had-or-would.jpg 1000w, https:\/\/www.espressoenglish.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/had-or-would-300x300.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.espressoenglish.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/had-or-would-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.espressoenglish.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/had-or-would-768x768.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 541px) 100vw, 541px\" \/><\/p>\n<h3>Contractions with other words<\/h3>\n<p>We\u2019ve been focusing on contractions with subjects that are people &#8211; I, you, he, she, etc. but we also have some common contractions with other words &#8211; so let\u2019s finish this lesson by looking at some of those.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Here is<\/strong> and <strong>there is<\/strong> become <strong>here\u2019s<\/strong> and <strong>there\u2019s<\/strong>. For example:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Here\u2019s<\/strong> the book you asked for.<\/li>\n<li><strong>There\u2019s<\/strong> no more milk in the fridge.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>We do not make contractions in writing with <strong>here are<\/strong> and <strong>there are<\/strong>, even though they might sound shorter when speaking. But in writing, they are always two words:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Here are the magazines you asked for.<\/li>\n<li>There are no more eggs in the fridge.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>That is<\/strong> becomes <strong>that\u2019s<\/strong>, and <strong>that would<\/strong> becomes <strong>that\u2019d<\/strong>:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>You got promoted? <strong>That\u2019s<\/strong> great!<\/li>\n<li>If you can pick up some groceries on your way home from work, <strong>that\u2019d<\/strong> be helpful.<br \/>\n<em>(note that when speaking, that\u2019d almost sounds like \u201cthad\u201d)<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>This will<\/strong> and <strong>that will<\/strong> become <strong>this\u2019ll<\/strong> and <strong>that\u2019ll<\/strong>:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>This\u2019ll<\/strong> be the first time my son travels by himself.<\/li>\n<li>She wants to make all the decorations by hand, but I think <strong>that\u2019ll<\/strong> take too long.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>We also see a lot of contractions with question words:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>What is\/has &#8211; <strong>what\u2019s<\/strong>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>What\u2019s<\/strong> your name?<\/li>\n<li><strong>What\u2019s<\/strong> he been doing lately?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>Where is &#8211; <strong>where\u2019s<\/strong>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Where\u2019s<\/strong> the nearest gas station?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>Where did &#8211; <strong>where\u2019d<\/strong>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Where\u2019d<\/strong> you go last night?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>When is &#8211; <strong>when\u2019s<\/strong>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>When\u2019s<\/strong> your birthday?<\/li>\n<li><strong>When\u2019s<\/strong> a good time for a meeting?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>Who is\/has &#8211; <strong>who\u2019s<\/strong>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Who\u2019s<\/strong> the best student in the class?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>How is\/has &#8211; <strong>how\u2019s<\/strong>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>How\u2019s<\/strong> your family?<\/li>\n<li><strong>How\u2019s<\/strong> everything been at work?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>How did\/would &#8211; <strong>how\u2019d<\/strong>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>How\u2019d<\/strong> you finish your homework so fast?<\/li>\n<li><strong>How\u2019d<\/strong> you like to go out for dinner?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>Why is\/has &#8211; <strong>why\u2019s<\/strong>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Why\u2019s<\/strong> the TV on if nobody&#8217;s watching?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>Why did &#8211; <strong>why\u2019d<\/strong>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Why\u2019d<\/strong> he leave work early?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>Let us &#8211;\u00a0<strong>let&#8217;s<\/strong>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Let&#8217;s<\/strong> learn all about English grammar!<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<div class=\"alert\">\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/espressoenglish.lpages.co\/free-pdf-50-contractions-in-english\/\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-23352\" src=\"https:\/\/www.espressoenglish.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/contractions.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"500\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.espressoenglish.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/contractions.png 1000w, https:\/\/www.espressoenglish.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/contractions-300x215.png 300w, https:\/\/www.espressoenglish.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/contractions-768x549.png 768w, https:\/\/www.espressoenglish.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/contractions-211x150.png 211w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><a class=\"elementor-button large green rounded\" href=\"https:\/\/espressoenglish.lpages.co\/free-pdf-50-contractions-in-english\/\"><strong>Download lesson PDF<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<h3>When to use and when NOT to use contractions<\/h3>\n<p>When we\u2019re speaking English, we use contractions very often &#8211; pretty much anytime there\u2019s an opportunity to use one, we use it in everyday speech. Otherwise, your speaking would sound kind of strange and robotic &#8211; plus it takes longer. Compare these:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>I would love to help tomorrow, but there is a good reason I cannot &#8211; my car is not working, so I will be taking it to the mechanic.<\/li>\n<li><strong>I\u2019d<\/strong> love to help tomorrow, but <strong>there\u2019s<\/strong> a good reason I <strong>can\u2019t<\/strong> &#8211; my <strong>car\u2019s<\/strong> not working, so <strong>I\u2019ll<\/strong> be taking it to the mechanic.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>We <strong>avoid<\/strong> contractions in <strong>formal writing<\/strong> &#8211; so that would be business letters and reports, contracts, academic essays and research papers. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.espressoenglish.net\/learn-more-formal-business-english-phrases\/\">Check out this lesson<\/a> about transforming more casual phrases into more formal phrases for business English.<\/p>\n<p>We <strong>can<\/strong> use contractions in <strong>informal writing<\/strong> &#8211; casual emails, blog posts, social media posts\/comments, text messages, etc.<\/p>\n<p>What about e-mails at work &#8211;\u00a0 are those considered formal or informal?<\/p>\n<p>It depends &#8211; contractions are fine in e-mails to people who you regularly communicate with, like your co-workers, supervisors or employees, clients with whom you already have a relationship, etc.<\/p>\n<p>But you should avoid contractions if it\u2019s the very first time you\u2019re contacting someone, such as in an e-mailed cover letter inquiring about a job you want, or when you\u2019re reaching out to a brand new client or someone at another company when you\u2019re beginning a business relationship with them. In those situations we tend to write a little more formally, and then the communication style becomes more casual over time as more messages get exchanged.<\/p>\n<p><em>Learn more: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.espressoenglish.net\/english-phrases-for-business-letters-and-e-mails\/\">English phrases for business letters and e-mails<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-23349\" src=\"https:\/\/www.espressoenglish.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/contractions-do-dont.png\" alt=\"Contractions: when not to use them\" width=\"552\" height=\"552\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.espressoenglish.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/contractions-do-dont.png 1000w, https:\/\/www.espressoenglish.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/contractions-do-dont-300x300.png 300w, https:\/\/www.espressoenglish.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/contractions-do-dont-150x150.png 150w, https:\/\/www.espressoenglish.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/contractions-do-dont-768x768.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 552px) 100vw, 552px\" \/><\/p>\n<h3>Contractions list &amp; contractions worksheets<\/h3>\n<p>Now you know all about contractions in the English language, and you\u2019ve seen lots of examples!<\/p>\n<p>Here are some <a href=\"https:\/\/www.superteacherworksheets.com\/contractions.html\">contractions worksheets and activities<\/a> to help you practice.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/espressoenglish.lpages.co\/free-pdf-50-contractions-in-english\/\"><strong>Download this lesson to save the contractions list!<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"alert\">\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.espressoenglish.net\/english-grammar-e-books-audio-mp3\/\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-20584 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.espressoenglish.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/grammar-ebooks-small.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"530\" height=\"414\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.espressoenglish.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/grammar-ebooks-small.png 530w, https:\/\/www.espressoenglish.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/grammar-ebooks-small-300x234.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 530px) 100vw, 530px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p align=\"center\"><a class=\"elementor-button large green rounded\" href=\"https:\/\/www.espressoenglish.net\/learn-essential-english-grammar-so-you-can-understand-it-clearly-and-use-it-confidently\/\"><strong>Grammar e-books<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"alert\">\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/espressoenglish.lpages.co\/advanced-english-grammar-course\/\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-19991\" src=\"https:\/\/www.espressoenglish.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/aegc-1024x780.png\" alt=\"Advanced English Grammar Course\" width=\"680\" height=\"518\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.espressoenglish.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/aegc-1024x780.png 1024w, https:\/\/www.espressoenglish.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/aegc-300x229.png 300w, https:\/\/www.espressoenglish.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/aegc-768x585.png 768w, https:\/\/www.espressoenglish.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/aegc.png 700w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 680px) 100vw, 680px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p align=\"center\"><a class=\"elementor-button large green rounded\" href=\"https:\/\/espressoenglish.lpages.co\/advanced-english-grammar-course\/\"><strong>Advanced Grammar Course<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Download lesson PDF Contractions combine two words into a short form with an apostrophe to replace the missing letter or letters &#8211; for example, I am becomes I&#8217;m could not becomes couldn&#8217;t &#8230;and many more that you&#8217;ll learn in the contractions list below! Contractions are extremely common in spoken English and informal written English, and [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":23346,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-23345","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-grammar"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v27.1 (Yoast SEO v27.1.1) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>50+ Contractions in English: List &amp; Examples - Espresso English<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Contractions combine two words into a short form with an apostrophe - I&#039;m, he&#039;s, aren&#039;t, could&#039;ve, etc. Learn 50 contractions + examples!\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.espressoenglish.net\/50-contractions-in-english-list-examples\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"50+ Contractions in English: List &amp; 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