| A contraction is simply a shortened version of a | | | | We've been to Thailand twice before. |
| word - the contracted form. We often contract | | | | Had |
| or shorten words when we speak and nowadays | | | | She'd been waiting all day for his call. |
| contractions are popular in everyday spoken | | | | We'd better hurry! |
| English, where the contracted form of "to be" is | | | | They'd better be on time. |
| the most widely used. For example, "I am" | | | | I'd better be on time. |
| becomes "I'm" and "We are" becomes "We're". | | | | Will |
| There are, of course, many examples of other | | | | I'll get you a cup of tea. |
| auxiliary verbs that are also contracted in colloquial | | | | Susan'll get the cups. |
| English. To avoid any confusion over how to use | | | | What'll we do now? |
| contractions, check the list below for the most | | | | He'll be there in five minutes. |
| common examples: | | | | They'll wait for you at the station. |
| Am | | | | That'll be the day! |
| I'm not going to work today. | | | | Would |
| Is | | | | I'd like a cup of tea, please. |
| She's coming to the party. | | | | She'd love to travel to Thailand. |
| Susan's at the office. | | | | They'd prefer to travel to India. |
| Who's at the door? | | | | We'd like some tea. |
| There's no need to shout! | | | | It is important to remember that using |
| Are | | | | contractions makes whatever you say more |
| You're my best friend. | | | | informal and for that reason contractions are |
| They're on holiday in Thailand. | | | | more commonly used in spoken English. However, |
| We're going on holiday tomorrow. | | | | with the growing use of emails and text |
| Has | | | | messaging, it appears that English is becoming |
| She's been to Thailand twice before. | | | | more informal in general and therefore the use of |
| It's been ages since I last saw you! | | | | contractions is increasing. Nonetheless, it is |
| John's gone to the office. | | | | important to remember that contractions should |
| What's he been up to? | | | | be avoided in all types of formal writing, including |
| Who's been told about the cancellation? | | | | business letters, essays and exams. In these |
| Have | | | | situations you must use the full form of the |
| I've finished the report at last. | | | | auxiliary verbs otherwise you risk your work not |
| They've got three dogs. | | | | being taken seriously. |