# Ending a sentence with "you're" **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 12, 2014, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ending-a-sentence-with-youre/695388 "2014-08-12T18:55:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Trom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/958977/32.png) [@Trom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trom)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2014, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ending-a-sentence-with-youre/695388/1 "2014-08-12T18:55:00Z")
“I’m a faster runner than you’re.” That doesn’t sound right… but why not? Plenty of other contractions sound perfectly fine at the end of sentences. This [site](http://www.quickanddirtytips.com/education/grammar/why-does-it-sound-weird-to-end-a-sentence-with-a-contraction) explains that there are “weak” and “strong” versions of some words, but those distinctions exist only to our ears and not really by rules of grammar. It argues that, for whatever reason, English speakers don’t end sentences with “weak” forms. But is it technically grammatically incorrect? ---
**Author:** ![Sicks\_Ate](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/258eb7/32.png) [@Sicks\_Ate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sicks_Ate)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2014, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ending-a-sentence-with-youre/695388/2 "2014-08-12T18:59:12Z")
Isn’t the “are” at the end of the sentence superfluous? ---
**Author:** ![Trom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/958977/32.png) [@Trom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trom)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2014, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ending-a-sentence-with-youre/695388/3 "2014-08-12T19:21:56Z")
> [@Sicks\_Ate](#): > > Isn’t the “are” at the end of the sentence superfluous? Different example… “Who’s faster?” “You’re.” ---
**Author:** ![Trom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/958977/32.png) [@Trom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trom)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2014, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ending-a-sentence-with-youre/695388/4 "2014-08-12T19:28:34Z")
Or consider the contraction “you’ll.” “You don’t like fish? After this meal you’ll.” ---
**Author:** ![borschevsky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/97f17d/32.png) [@borschevsky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/borschevsky)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2014, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ending-a-sentence-with-youre/695388/5 "2014-08-12T19:33:25Z")
Who’ll be on first? You’ll. Yul Brynner? ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2014, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ending-a-sentence-with-youre/695388/6 "2014-08-12T19:38:02Z")
> [@](#): > > Quoth **Trom** : > > But is it technically grammatically incorrect? It sounds wrong to a native speaker, and would never be used naturally by one. That’s exactly what “grammatically incorrect” means. So apparently there is some grammatical law that prohibits it, which may or may not have been discovered and named by some linguist. ---
**Author:** ![Inner\_Stickler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inner_stickler/32/318_2.png) [@Inner\_Stickler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inner_Stickler)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2014, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ending-a-sentence-with-youre/695388/7 "2014-08-12T19:38:57Z")
> [@Trom](#): > > But is it technically grammatically incorrect? That depends on what you mean by grammatical. If you’re using a linguistic definition, than no, it’s not grammatically correct, because a native speaker would reject a formulation such as “I’m smarter than you’re.” as being wrong. ---
**Author:** ![Trom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/958977/32.png) [@Trom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trom)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2014, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ending-a-sentence-with-youre/695388/8 "2014-08-12T19:46:19Z")
I understand that “correct” grammar is fluid and changes with time and society. But is there no rule why this is incorrect at this point in time? “It’s wrong… just because,” would be the only explanation a teacher would have when subtracting points from a student’s essay? ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2014, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ending-a-sentence-with-youre/695388/9 "2014-08-12T19:49:35Z")
Now start a sentence with “\*In \*July…” ---
**Author:** ![buddha\_david](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ee7513/32.png) [@buddha\_david](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/buddha_david)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2014, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ending-a-sentence-with-youre/695388/10 "2014-08-12T19:52:12Z")
AFAIK, there’s no grammatical rule which prohibits ending a sentence with a contraction. It does sound very awkward, so most of the time, it’s best if you don’t. ---
**Author:** ![Inner\_Stickler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inner_stickler/32/318_2.png) [@Inner\_Stickler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inner_Stickler)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2014, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ending-a-sentence-with-youre/695388/11 "2014-08-12T19:57:52Z")
> [@Trom](#): > > “It’s wrong… just because,” would be the only explanation a teacher would have when subtracting points from a student’s essay? It’s wrong because that’s not how English works. It’s no different than if the student had written “the ball red” or even “the red, big ball”. There’s nothing objectively wrong with such formulations except that they’re not how generations of speakers have chosen to organize the language. ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Tildrum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e95f7d/32.png) [@Tom\_Tildrum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Tildrum)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2014, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ending-a-sentence-with-youre/695388/12 "2014-08-12T20:06:04Z")
ObSimpsons: > [@](#): > > “Some folk’ll never eat a skunk, > but then again some folk’ll, > like Cletus, the slack-jawed yokel!” ---
**Author:** ![Trom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/958977/32.png) [@Trom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trom)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2014, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ending-a-sentence-with-youre/695388/13 "2014-08-12T20:31:48Z")
> [@Inner\_Stickler](#): > > It’s wrong because that’s not how English works. It’s no different than if the student had written “the ball red” or even “the red, big ball”. There’s nothing objectively wrong with such formulations except that they’re not how generations of speakers have chosen to organize the language. But in your example of post-postive adjectives there are [general rules](http://www.onestopenglish.com/grammar/grammar-reference/adjectives/adjectives-and-noun-modifiers-in-english-article/144843.article) about when they are appropriate and a pretty clear [history](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Post-positive_adjective) of their usage. From a different angle: If someone learning English were to ask why, “Though you claim to not like fish, after this meal you’ll,” is not correct, how would you answer? “Not sure, just doesn’t sound right.” The end? ---
**Author:** ![Inner\_Stickler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inner_stickler/32/318_2.png) [@Inner\_Stickler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inner_Stickler)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2014, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ending-a-sentence-with-youre/695388/14 "2014-08-12T21:00:23Z")
Because English doesn’t allow for weak forms in syntactic stranding and these clitics are, in this instance, a sub-group of weak forms. ---
**Author:** ![Trom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/958977/32.png) [@Trom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trom)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2014, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ending-a-sentence-with-youre/695388/15 "2014-08-12T21:15:02Z")
> [@Inner\_Stickler](#): > > Because English doesn’t allow for weak forms in syntactic stranding and these clitics are, in this instance, a sub-group of weak forms. I follow you there… but then wouldn’t sentences with “n’t” contractions at the end also be disallowed? Or is the “n’t” not a clitic? ---
**Author:** ![jtur88](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e9c0ed/32.png) [@jtur88](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jtur88)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2014, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ending-a-sentence-with-youre/695388/16 "2014-08-12T21:22:09Z")
Usages differ in various parts of the English speaking world, with respect to which vowels can be left out and when: America; It’s a pity. Ireland: 'Tis a pity. A contraction reduces a spoken expression to its phonetic. “Can’t” is pronounced with one syllable, “cannot” with two. If you don’t want to show that is to be pronounced that way, you can’t use the contraction when you write it. ---
**Author:** ![RivkahChaya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rivkahchaya/32/8919_2.png) [@RivkahChaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RivkahChaya)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2014, 9:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ending-a-sentence-with-youre/695388/17 "2014-08-12T21:28:43Z")
The cadence is wrong. Cadence is an important part of language, even though it isn’t part of grammar. You can make up words, and as long as they follow the morphological rules for words in English (“duggish” could be an English would “pfeeoar” could not); you can then come up with sentences that either do or do not use English cadence, and ask native speakers which sentences sound right, and which do not, and you will get very high levels of agreement. English sentences need a stress at the end. That’s why iambic pentameter sounds so natural that people barely notice it’s metered, but Poe’s “Once upon a midnight dreary,” makes you feel a little uneasy. ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2014, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ending-a-sentence-with-youre/695388/18 "2014-08-12T21:41:02Z")
Contractions like “you’re” and “you’ll” are dismissive of the verb as semantically redundant while accommodating its grammatical necessity, as in “you’re a fine fellow”. But in a sentence like “You may think you’re not opinionated, but everyone tells me that you are”, the “are” at the end carries the stress and the core of the meaning. It’s a completely different usage. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2014, 10:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ending-a-sentence-with-youre/695388/19 "2014-08-12T22:12:31Z")
> [@buddha\_david](#): > > AFAIK, there’s no grammatical rule which prohibits ending a sentence with a contraction. It does sound very awkward, so most of the time, it’s best if you don’t. Hey, sometimes you should, and sometimes it is better that you refrain. ---
**Author:** ![zombywoof](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/9e8a1a/32.png) [@zombywoof](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zombywoof)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2014, 10:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ending-a-sentence-with-youre/695388/20 "2014-08-12T22:46:53Z")
I think a couple of the examples given, if heard, are likely to sound “incomplete”: “I’m a faster runner than you’re” (“you’re” heard as “your”) - Than my what? My brother? My daughter? “You don’t like fish? After this meal you’ll.” - I’ll what? Love it? Want to vomit? [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ending-a-sentence-with-youre/695388.md?page=2)