-n't
Pronunciation
- IPA: /ənt/, /nt/
Origin
Full definition of -n't
Suffix
- negate
Usage notes
The suffix -n’t can only be added to auxiliary verbs, including dare and need in certain uses, and be in almost all uses. Indeed, in some dialects, not even all auxiliary verbs accept -n’t; for example, mayn’t is present in some dialects and absent in others.
Some verbs change their form when -n’t is added; for example, shall + -n’t is usually shan’t, and am + -n’t is frequently aren’t or ain’t (though all three of these are dialect-dependent).
Though verbs with -n’t are usually considered contractions of versions using the adverb not, grammatically they behave a bit differently. For example, when subject and verb are inverted, -n’t remains attached to the verb, whereas not does not:
Isn’t that difficult?
Is that not difficult?
Semantically, -n’t may have either “high attachment†or “low attachmentâ€, depending primarily on the verb. For example, “I can’t leave†means “It is not the case that I can leave†(usually “I am unable to leaveâ€), whereas “I shouldn’t leave†means basically “I should stay†(which is a narrower statement, and therefore a stronger one, than “It is not the case that I should leaveâ€). (“I can stayâ€, by contrast, is very different from “I can’t leave.â€) Similar variation is seen with the adverb not, as well as various other negative constructions.