Are you gonna listen to what I'm listening to now?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the use of informal contractions in the English language, particularly focusing on terms like "gonna" and "wanna." Participants explore the implications of these terms in both spoken and written contexts, as well as their acceptance in casual versus formal settings.

Discussion Character

  • Debate/contested
  • Conceptual clarification

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants reference previous posts to highlight the widespread use and understanding of informal contractions like "gonna."
  • One participant describes the term "physicist wannabees" as commonly understood among those with little physics background who believe they can perform as well as trained physicists.
  • Another participant argues that if popular music is considered authoritative for English, then phrases like "Is you is or is you ain't my baby" should also be accepted, raising questions about the legitimacy of informal language.
  • A participant asserts that "wanna" is not a recognized word in the English language, supporting this with a claim about the misuse of language.
  • Informal contractions are discussed as short forms used in casual speech, with a note that they are not typically used in formal writing.
  • It is suggested that informal contractions may be more prevalent in American English, and there is a distinction made between normal contractions and informal ones regarding apostrophe usage.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express differing views on the legitimacy and appropriateness of informal contractions in English, with no consensus reached on their acceptance in formal contexts.

Contextual Notes

Some participants highlight the informal nature of these contractions and their limited use in formal writing, indicating a potential divide in acceptance based on context and audience.

symbolipoint
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It is also quite common, and I use the expression, to refer to people who have little or no physics background, but believe they can do physics as good or better than people with advanced degrees in physics as "physicist wannabees". It is used often enough that I shouldn't need to put in parentheses (physicist want-to-be's) to have the reader know what I am referring to. ## \\ ## I think the Mentors on PF do a pretty good job of filtering many of these, so that we don't get to see nearly as many posts from these types as they do. :smile:
 
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If we're going to declare popular music as authoritative for English, we need to accept "Is you is or is you ain't my baby". And "Lay, lady lay" should be "Lie, lady lie". Don't even get me started on "conversate".
 
Wanna is not a word in the English language. V50 is correct.

This might clarify how and why such abuse of written language began.

Informal Contractions
Informal contractions are short forms of other words that people use when speaking casually. They are not exactly slang, but they are a little like slang.

For example, "gonna" is a short form of "going to". If you say going to very fast, without carefully pronouncing each word, it can sound like gonna.

Please remember that these are informal contractions. That means that we do not use them in "correct" speech, and we almost never use them in writing. (If you see them in writing, for example in a comic strip, that is because the written words represent the spoken words or dialogue.) We normally use them only when speaking fast and casually, for example with friends. Some people never use them, even in informal speech.

It is probably true to say that informal contractions are more common in American English.

Also note that, unlike normal contractions, we do not always use apostrophes (') with informal contractions when written.
https://www.englishclub.com/vocabulary/contractions-informal.htm
 
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