Common Contractions Used in Spoken English: A Comprehensive Guide

Contractions are a vital part of spoken English, helping to make conversations sound more natural and fluid. They combine two words into one, often using an apostrophe to indicate the omission of certain letters. Understanding and using contractions correctly can significantly enhance your fluency and make your speech sound more native. In this blog post, we’ll explore common contractions used in spoken English, their usage, and examples to help you master them.

What Are Contractions?

Contractions are shortened forms of words or combinations of words created by omitting certain letters and sounds. They are prevalent in everyday speech, informal writing, and even some formal contexts. By using contractions, you can convey messages more succinctly and sound more conversational.

here are common contractions used in spoken English, grouped by categories:

Pronoun + Verb Contractions

1. I + am = I’m
2. I + have = I’ve
3. I + will = I’ll
4. I + would = I’d
5. You + are = You’re
6. You + have = You’ve
7. You + will = You’ll
8. You + would = You’d
9. He + is = He’s
10. He + has = He’s
11. He + will = He’ll
12. He + would = He’d
13. She + is = She’s
14. She + has = She’s
15. She + will = She’ll
16. She + would = She’d
17. It + is = It’s
18. It + has = It’s
19. It + will = It’ll
20. It + would = It’d
21. We + are = We’re
22. We + have = We’ve
23. We + will = We’ll
24. We + would = We’d
25. They + are = They’re
26. They + have = They’ve
27. They + will = They’ll
28. They + would = They’d

Negative Contractions

1. Is + not = Isn’t
2. Are + not = Aren’t
3. Was + not = Wasn’t
4. Were + not = Weren’t
5. Have + not = Haven’t
6. Has + not = Hasn’t
7. Had + not = Hadn’t
8. Will + not = Won’t
9. Would + not = Wouldn’t
10. Do + not = Don’t
11. Does + not = Doesn’t
12. Did + not = Didn’t
13. Cannot = Can’t
14. Could + not = Couldn’t
15. Should + not = Shouldn’t
16. Might + not = Mightn’t
17. Must + not = Mustn’t

Other Common Contractions

1. That + is = That’s
2. Who + is = Who’s
3. Who + has = Who’s
4. What + is = What’s
5. What + has = What’s
6. Where + is = Where’s
7. Where + has = Where’s
8. When + is = When’s
9. When + has = When’s
10. Why + is = Why’s
11. Why + has = Why’s
12. How + is = How’s
13. How + has = How’s
14. Let + us = Let’s
15. There + is = There’s
16. There + has = There’s
17. There + will = There’ll
18. Here + is = Here’s
19. Here + has = Here’s

Informal and Colloquial Contractions

1. Going to = Gonna
2. Want to = Wanna
3. Got to = Gotta
4. Have to = Hafta
5. Need to = Needa
6. Give me = Gimme
7. Let me = Lemme
8. Don’t know = Dunno
9. Kind of = Kinda
10. Out of = Outta
11. Could have = Could’ve
12. Should have = Should’ve
13. Would have = Would’ve
14. Might have = Might’ve
15. Must have = Must’ve

These contractions are commonly used in everyday speech to make communication quicker and more fluid.