# Negative interrogative 1st person singular contraction **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [January 16, 2000, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/negative-interrogative-1st-person-singular-contraction/6378 "2000-01-16T19:39:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/earl_snake-hips_tucker/32/3269_2.png) [@Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Earl_Snake-Hips_Tucker)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2000, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/negative-interrogative-1st-person-singular-contraction/6378/1 "2000-01-16T19:39:00Z")
What’s the straight dope? There doesn’t appear to be a good one. “Aren’t I” just sounds awful to me, and I never use that. Besides, it disagrees in number. What do grammarians say should be the “proper” contraction? Or, maybe they consider all contractions to be _im_proper, so they never considered the question. ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2000, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/negative-interrogative-1st-person-singular-contraction/6378/2 "2000-01-16T20:05:00Z")
Am I not? ---
**Author:** ![pluto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f08c70/32.png) [@pluto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pluto)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2000, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/negative-interrogative-1st-person-singular-contraction/6378/3 "2000-01-16T21:07:00Z")
Who me? ---
**Author:** ![mangeorge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d78d45/32.png) [@mangeorge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mangeorge)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2000, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/negative-interrogative-1st-person-singular-contraction/6378/4 "2000-01-16T21:18:00Z")
Ain’t I? Peace, mangeorge * * * I only know two things; I know what I need to know And I know what I want to know Mangeorge, 2000 ---
**Author:** ![toecutter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/df705f/32.png) [@toecutter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/toecutter)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2000, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/negative-interrogative-1st-person-singular-contraction/6378/5 "2000-01-16T21:19:00Z")
I usually use: “Aren’t I - Mo Fo”? Haven’t had any grammarian disagree with it so far. ---
**Author:** ![handy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b5a626/32.png) [@handy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handy)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2000, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/negative-interrogative-1st-person-singular-contraction/6378/6 "2000-01-16T21:19:00Z")
I wouldn’t’ve used ain’t I myself. ---
**Author:** ![mangeorge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d78d45/32.png) [@mangeorge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mangeorge)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2000, 9:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/negative-interrogative-1st-person-singular-contraction/6378/7 "2000-01-16T21:24:00Z")
'Cause why? Peace, mangeorge ---
**Author:** ![John\_W.Kennedy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_w.kennedy/32/1031_2.png) [@John\_W.Kennedy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_W.Kennedy)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2000, 9:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/negative-interrogative-1st-person-singular-contraction/6378/8 "2000-01-16T21:34:00Z")
“Amn’t I” (two syllables) is technically correct, but people will look at you strangely unless you live in certain parts of Ireland. (“Ain’t” comes from “amn’t”.) There is no technically correct, formal way. However, that doesn’t much matter, inasmuch as contractions really don’t belong in formal writing to begin with. Use what the people around you use when speaking. Use “Am I not,” or a paraphrase in formal writing. * * * John W. Kennedy “Compact is becoming contract; man only earns and pays.” – Charles Williams ---
**Author:** ![C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b2d939/32.png) [@C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/C_K_Dexter_Haven)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2000, 1:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/negative-interrogative-1st-person-singular-contraction/6378/9 "2000-01-17T13:46:00Z")
And, regardless of formality, “Aren’t I” is perfectly acceptable conversationally. ---
**Author:** ![DSYoungEsq](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c6cbf5/32.png) [@DSYoungEsq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSYoungEsq)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2000, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/negative-interrogative-1st-person-singular-contraction/6378/10 "2000-01-17T19:00:00Z")
Aren’t I would be grammatically incorrect, moreso than ain’t I, because it doesn’t agree in number between the verb and the subject pronoun, whereas ain’t I is correct as to number, but incorrect as to pronounciation. And, yes, a lot of people say ‘aren’t I?’, but then again, a lot of people use poor English. I have never felt that that was a good reason to use poor English myself. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![tomndebb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@tomndebb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tomndebb)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2000, 3:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/negative-interrogative-1st-person-singular-contraction/6378/11 "2000-01-18T03:17:00Z")
“Aren’t I” is always perfectly correct in number as long as we remember to use the royal/editorial “we.” :::sniff:::   * * * Tom~ ---
**Author:** ![tomndebb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@tomndebb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tomndebb)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2000, 3:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/negative-interrogative-1st-person-singular-contraction/6378/12 "2000-01-18T03:18:00Z")
Oh “Aren’t We”. . . You did mean “Aren’t We,” didn’t you guys? * * * Tom~ ---
**Author:** ![system](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/original/2X/e/e489c3b7d8fce19c4b355dd4fc3f88cc39c34b87.png) [@system](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/system)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2000, 3:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/negative-interrogative-1st-person-singular-contraction/6378/13 "2000-01-18T03:27:00Z")
Someone enters the room and you politely say: Won’t you sit down? or Will you sit down? Are both correct? assuming that “please” is placed somewhere in each question. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2000, 3:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/negative-interrogative-1st-person-singular-contraction/6378/14 "2000-01-18T03:38:00Z")
> [@](#): > > Aren’t I would be grammatically incorrect, moreso than ain’t I, because it doesn’t agree in number between the verb and the subject pronoun, whereas ain’t I is correct as to number, but incorrect as to pronounciation. “Aren’t I” is an idiom, and idioms don’t need to conform to the Laws of English Usage. According to Quirk and Greenbaum: “‘Aren’t I’ is widely used in British English, but there is no generally accepted contracted form for ‘am not’ in declarative sentences.” So it’s not bad grammer to use the phrase; there’s no other contraction available other than “ain’t I?” * * * “East is east and west is west and if you take cranberries and stew them like applesauce they taste much more like prunes than rhubarb does.” – Marx Read “Sundials” in the new issue of Aboriginal Science Fiction. [www.sff.net/people/rothman](http://www.sff.net/people/rothman) ---
**Author:** ![MrKnowItAll](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrknowitall/32/87_2.png) [@MrKnowItAll](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrKnowItAll)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2000, 3:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/negative-interrogative-1st-person-singular-contraction/6378/15 "2000-01-18T03:47:00Z")
Well, since contractions are considered undesirable in formal English, “Am I not?” would be correct. If you are using informal English, there’s nothing wrong with “Aren’t I?” ---
**Author:** ![moriah](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b2d939/32.png) [@moriah](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/moriah)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2000, 8:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/negative-interrogative-1st-person-singular-contraction/6378/16 "2000-01-18T08:07:00Z")
“Contracted negative of the first person indicative present.” The ‘interrogative’ part is moot since the contraction doesn’t work in any voice. And you need to specify ‘indicative’ and ‘present’ if you want to rule out _I won’t_ and _I wouldn’t_. I think we should all just start making the contraction and get everyone to use it. I’m making myself clear here, amn’t[sup]1[/sup] I? Peace. [sup]1[/sup]Pronounced EM’-ment. ---
**Author:** ![Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/earl_snake-hips_tucker/32/3269_2.png) [@Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Earl_Snake-Hips_Tucker)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2000, 3:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/negative-interrogative-1st-person-singular-contraction/6378/17 "2000-01-18T15:10:00Z")
> [@](#): > > The ‘interrogative’ part is moot since the contraction doesn’t work in any voice. But there’s an acceptable alternative, so it’s not an issue: “I’m not. . . .” ---
**Author:** ![moriah](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b2d939/32.png) [@moriah](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/moriah)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2000, 6:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/negative-interrogative-1st-person-singular-contraction/6378/18 "2000-01-21T06:19:00Z")
> [@](#): > > Originally posted by Mjollnir: > \*\* But there’s an acceptable alternative, so it’s not an issue: “I’m not. . . .”\*\* Ahh, but that’s not contracting the negative, but contracting the positive and adding the negative. I amn’t kidding you. 😛 Peace