Whats the point of a contraction?

[quakerboy]

Does not becomes Doesn't. Just as many characters. Now, dosnt, that would be time saver, but the spell check flags it mercilessly.

Then again if you want true efficiency, just try out He'll.

[rug]

1. Facilitates birth.

[quakerboy]

2. Point to you

well played. I award you an Isnt on that one.

[GreenPartyVoter]

3. Sounds more casual.

[quakerboy]

4. I heretofore abjure the use of

doesn't. In its place I will heretoforth use the more properly casual Dosnt. And screw the little red underlining.

[Mollis]

5. I thought that said

what is the point of contraception.

[Iggo]

6. Use double contractions, and save even more!

My favorite is I'd've, though I've been known to throw out an occasional it'll've.

Double contractions rule.

[ZombieNixon]

11. Triple contractions are better.

I would not have used "I would not have" when "I'dn't've" looks so much more awesome. :P

[Iggo]

12. ohmygod that is sofa king awesome !!!!

w00t

[LostInAnomie]

7. Won't is the best one

Because it doesn't even resemble what it's a contraction for. How the fuck did "will not" turn into "won't"?

[MineralMan]

8. It's explainable, but I'll spare you...

[Xithras]

10. Willn’t is actually "acceptable" English, but it's been out of use for a century or so.

It's odd that "willn’t" fell out of use, while "won't" became the standard contraction.

At one time, both were used side by side. Won't comes from the medival spelling of "will", which was "wolle". "Wolle not" became "won't", and we held onto it despite the fact that "will" eventually became the standard spelling of the first root word.

I didn't even have to Google that. I was curious about it myself years ago, and looked it up :)

[NJmaverick]

9. I have always thought that the written word follows the spoken word

so Doesn't is easier to say than Does not. When they decided how to write that verbal short cut they came up with this spelling convention.

[jobycom]

16. ya. Speaking comes first, writing is just an attempt to keep up.

[Odin2005]

13. Language change. Grammar words becoming word endings.

The apostrophe is just a spelling convention representing the dropped sounds.

[Gormy Cuss]

14. Takes less effort to say.

[bluesbassman]

15. Not sure, but I do know that the crux of the biscuit is the apostrophe.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D9FBQ1O5F8k
In the dark
Where all the fevers grow
Under the watah
Where the shark bubbles blow
In the morning
By your radio
Do the walls close in to suffocate, yah
You ain't got no friends
And all the others they hate, yah
Does the life you been leading gotta go? (HMMmm?)
(Well let me straighten you out)
About a place I know
(Get your shoes and socks on people, it's right around the corner)
Out through the night and the whispering breezes
To the place where they keep the imaginary diseases
Out through the night and the whispering breezes
To the place where they keep the imaginary diseases
(This has got to be the disease for you
Now scientists call this disease, Brohm-a-drosis
But us regular folks, who might wear tennis shoes
or an occasional python boot,
know this exquisite little inconvenience by the name of
STINK-FOOT)
You know
My python boot is too tight
I couldn't get it off last night
A week went by
And now it's July
I finally got it off
And my girlfriend cried, YOU GOT STINK-FOOT!
Stink-foot, darlin'
Your Stink-foot
Puts a hurt on my nose
Stink-foot, stink-foot, I ain't lyin'
Can you rinse it off, do you suppose?
(Here Fido, Fido, mpt, mpt, mpt, come here little puppy
Bring the slippers
Arf, arf, arf
(C-R-A-S-H)
Huhm, HAH, HAH, HAH...hmhmhm)
STINK!
(Well then Fido got up off the floor, and he rolled over
and he looked me straight in the eye
And you know what he said?
Once upon a time, somebody say to me
This is the dog talkin' now
What is your, conceptual, continuity?
Well I told 'em right then, Fido said
It should be easy to see
The crux of the biscuit
is the apostrophe
Well you know, the man that was talking to the dog
looked at the dog, and he said
Sort of staring in disbelief
You can't say that
he said
It doesn't, and you can't, I won't, and it don't
it hasn't, it isn't, it even ain't, and it shouldn't
it couldn't
He told him, No, no, no
I told him, Yes, yes, yes
I said, I do it all the time
Ain't this boogie a mess?)
The poodle bites, the poodle chews it