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Archiver > Melungeon > 2001-01 > 0980897392


From: (Roberta J. Reeves)
Subject: [Melungeon] Re: Ain't
Date: Tue, 30 Jan 2001 17:29:52 -0600 (CST)
In-Reply-To: Melungeon-D-request@rootsweb.com's message of Tue, 30 Jan 200103:34:49 -0800


Hey guys,
When I was in school, lo these many years ago, we were told to never
use the non word "ain't". Not proper English we were told, and it
wasn't in any dictionary I ever saw. By the time my daughters were
in school during the 1960's, ain't had found it's way into the
dictionary -- but only as a slang word. Then, by way of some miracle,
by the late 1970's and early 1980's, when my sons were in school, there
it was in the dictionary as a contraction of "am not". Now, pray tell
me, how did this come about? It is used interchangably with "isn't",
and "aren't". As far as I'm concerned, still a "no, no". My English
teacher would come back to haunt me if she heard me utter it. Perish
the thought!.
R.J. (Joyce)

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