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Guest Posted 21 years ago
Grammar

Amn't

0Is it incorrect to say " I amn't " instead of "I'm not". Although it sounds ungrammatical it is not fundamentally different to saying "He isn't" rather than "He's not" both of which are considered acceptable. 0-
  

Top answer

0 Hi guest, 02br 02br 00That is a very good question. 02br 02br 00In fact, it is not correct to say "I amn't", and it should always be "I'm not". 02br 02br 00In the part of England where I live, this construct "I amn't" is occasionally used, but it is regarded as a "dialect term".

— Abbie1948

  • 0 Hi guest, 02br 02br 00That is a very good question.
  • 02br 02br 00In fact, it is not correct to say "I amn't", and it should always be "I'm not".
  • 02br 02br 00In the part of England where I live, this construct "I amn't" is occasionally used, but it is regarded as a "dialect term".
  • It is not grammatical.
  • 0-
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15 Answers
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0 Hi guest, 02br
02br
00That is a very good question. 02br
02br
00In fact, it is not correct to say "I amn't", and it should always be "I'm not". 02br
02br
00In the part of England where I live, this construct "I amn't" is occasionally used, but it is regarded as a "dialect term". It is not grammatical. 0-
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0 Hi, 02br
00I don't say 'I amn't', I'd more naturally say 'I'm not'. 02br
00However, I do sometimes say 'Amn't I?' rather than 'Aren't I?'. It seems a bit more acceptable in the question form. To me, this was a correct structure in BrE 40 years ago, when I left, but I guess things have evolved since then. 02br
00Clive 0-
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0 You two are right. 'Amn't I?' and 'I amn't' are said to be a substandard expression in Scotland and Ireland. 02br
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00paco 0-
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0 Hi, 02br
00Gee, I'm still reeling from the suggestion that what I speak is a 'dialect', and now you tell me that what I speak is 'substandard'. Can't we just leave it that I speak a 'charming regional variation of English'? 02br
00But I admit that I was born and spent my early years in Ireland, which bears out what you suggest. 02br
00Then again, someone (I
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0 Hi Clive, 02br
02br
00I'm happy with charming, since it's used up here too.[Y] 0-
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0 That's interesting. I've always assumed that the pronunciation 'aren't I?' was a smoothed-over version of 'amn't I'; or perhaps a later version of 'a'n't I/ain't I'. 02br
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00MrP 0-
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0 Clive, I feel it would be true that Irish people are the best speakers of English in the world. To me "Amn't I?" sounds reasonable, at least more reasonable than "Ain't I" or "Arn't I", when they are compared with other contracted forms like "Aren't you?" and "Isn't it?". I think this Irish dialect might be a relic of the past history that the Irish people tried to stringently teach their chil
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0 Not being a Scot myself, I cannot swear to this, but I believe the Aberdonians (people from Aberdeen) like to claim they are the best speakers of English. Since Eng. has so many variants and such a long and colourful history, I'm not sure anyone can really lay claim to that honour! 0-
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0 You may be right. I guess every native speaker will believe he/she is one of the best speakers of English. I fancy myself I'm one of the best speakers of Japanese. 02br
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00paco 0-
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0That would go without saying, paco - and one of the best Japanese speakers of English , I have no doubt!050010id4
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