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[Poll]

is aint a word?

Yes- aint is legally a word

62% (28)

nope

37% (17)

Total Votes : 45

(last vote on : 5/15/2007 5:27:55 PM)
(Poll will run till: -- )

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RE: is aint a word? - 5/15/2007 4:47:39 AM

Domin8tingUrDrmz

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Ain't, ain't a word, and ain't, ain't proper.

Some dictionaries include it and indicate that it is not standard. Other dictionaries it is not included at all. I wonder if it is included in the Oxford English Dictionary.

The OED has an online version, but one must have a subscription in order to view it. Does anyone here possess a copy of the OED? I refer to that source, because among many, it is considered the quintessential reference on the English language; if anyone could lay claim to the legality of the word OED certainly could.

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RE: is aint a word? - 5/15/2007 4:57:46 AM

michaelOfGeorgia

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From http://www.m-w.com/dictionary/ain't :

ain't
One entry found for ain't.

Main Entry: ain't

Pronunciation: 'Ant
Etymology: contraction of are not
1 : am not : are not : is not
2 : have not : has not
3 : do not : does not : did not -- used in some varieties of Black English
usage Although widely disapproved as nonstandard and more common in the habitual speech of the less educated, ain't in senses 1 and 2 is flourishing in American English. It is used in both speech and writing to catch attention and to gain emphasis <the wackiness of movies, once so deliciously amusing, ain't funny anymore -- Richard Schickel> <I am telling you--there ain't going to be any blackmail -- R. M. Nixon>. It is used especially in journalistic prose as part of a consistently informal style <the creative process ain't easy -- Mike Royko>. This informal ain't is commonly distinguished from habitual ain't by its frequent occurrence in fixed constructions and phrases <well--class it ain't -- Cleveland Amory> <for money? say it ain't so, Jimmy! -- Andy Rooney> <you ain't seen nothing yet> <that ain't hay> <two out of three ain't bad> <if it ain't broke, don't fix it>. In fiction ain't is used for purposes of characterization; in familiar correspondence it tends to be the mark of a warm personal friendship. It is also used for metrical reasons in popular songs <Ain't She Sweet> <It Ain't Necessarily So>. Our evidence shows British use to be much the same as American.

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RE: is aint a word? - 5/15/2007 7:19:21 AM

LaTigresse

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quote:

ORIGINAL: Lordandmaster

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One of each. I like variety.

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RE: is aint a word? - 5/15/2007 9:09:32 AM

zindyslave

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With regards to the word ain't I live in the south and I have always heard ain't I use ain't used to get trouble in school for using ain't. I guess nowadays ain't is used more or less all over, I always thought it was a regional word. Oops!

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RE: is aint a word? - 5/15/2007 10:37:02 AM

Arpig

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One of the wonderful things about English is that is a living language, with no central authority to dictate what is or isn't a word or proper usage, therefore given the prelavance of usage, ain't is most definately a word, as are spamming, IM (as in IM me), fax, text (as a verb), etc. Language nazis may say otherwise, but with english it is the speakers who determine what is and isn't a word.

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RE: is aint a word? - 5/15/2007 2:47:54 PM

zindyslave

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Our language is always evolving as Arpig said so that is why with the internet we get the new words we didn't use before. And ain't has been around awhile, while it might not be in a dictionary if we know what it means and we use it them in my opinon it is a word.

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RE: is aint a word? - 5/15/2007 2:52:51 PM

minnetar

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quote:

ORIGINAL: LadyEllen

Right. I'm English, so bugger the dictionary or any professor! Ignore the Queen, or any other authority.

Aint, is a word. As are the regional variations used in my area - "ay" and "en"

as in "You are not going to catch fish in the canal"

"Yo ay gunna catch fish in the cut" or "You en gunna catch fish in the cut"

The English that is in the dictionary, and formalised in grammar books and so on, is a recent invention. The same process of standardisation occurred in every European language I can think of. The purpose of the standardisation was to provide an agreed, mutually intelligible form for the language, for use both within the population speaking varieties of it and for the purposes of contacts external to that population in other countries.

Thus, the only artificial or false English, is that to be found in the dictionary, "proper" pronunciations and in the grammar books. It is a contrived form to fulfil its purpose. It does this job well, but it isnt a real form of the language, and its importance for this purpose is lessening as more of us get to hear, through TV and radio etc, how other speakers use English and get used to their pronunciation and word usage, and understand what theyre saying.

Its a living language too, and every year they add new words to the dictionaries to take account of this, dropping older forms no longer in use. If it were meant to be that English was static, then we'd all still be speaking something between German, Dutch and Danish with maybe a few Romano-Welsh bits thrown in.

E

lol dang the English even think it is a word even though i don't.

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Post #: 27

RE: is aint a word? - 5/15/2007 2:59:00 PM

softness

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technically it is not a word of "Standard English" ... its a dialect word now in common usage .. it exists as a word because we speak it .. but you would labouring under a misaprehension if you used it in the belief it was Standard English

*quietly setps down off my english teachernsoap box ,., and returns to crossing the aints and innits out in exercise books*

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RE: is aint a word? - 5/15/2007 3:05:50 PM

HydroMaster

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Yes, it exists as a work because we speak it. But how do you think every other word became a word?....people spoke them until they were part of the standard language.

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