# From gonna to finna?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/from-gonna-to-finna/147812>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [January 10, 2003, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/from-gonna-to-finna/147812 "2003-01-10T20:42:02Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\
**Post date:** [January 10, 2003, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/from-gonna-to-finna/147812/1 "2003-01-10T20:42:02Z")

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Over lunch I overheard a term I have long wondered about.

**"I ain’t finna mess with that."**

In my experience, the term **finna** (sp?) is been used exclusively by black people. I also understand it to be synonymous with “going to.” But for the life of me, I cannot figure out the etiology of “finna.”

Any ideas?

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**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\
**Post date:** [January 10, 2003, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/from-gonna-to-finna/147812/2 "2003-01-10T20:45:21Z")

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Damn - I’m a fucking idiot!  
(Is it okay to call **yourself** names in GQ?)  
Derived from “fixing to.”

Google first, then post…

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**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\
**Post date:** [January 10, 2003, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/from-gonna-to-finna/147812/3 "2003-01-10T20:46:30Z")

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_fixing_ \> _fixin’_ \> _fi’in’_

_to_ \> _ta_ \> _'a_

_fixing to_ \> _fi’in’a_