kitewithfish (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
kitewithfish) wrote2010-07-16 09:14 pm
kitewithfish) wrote2010-07-16 09:14 pm
An American English Usage Question From a Native Speaker of That Tongue
Allow me, for the moment, to forgo to the traditional groveling about my failure to post- there is little excuse.
Rather, I have a question about standard American English usages of contractions with the verb "to have".
I'm going to provide a number of sentences that would sound weird to me, and then rewrite them to what sounds "normal" for American English usage as I understand it. Please tell me if I am full of shit and the original phrasing sounds perfectly normal American English to you.
CONFUSING: I haven't any money.
REWRITE: I didn't have any money.
***
CONFUSING: I haven't any money.
REWRITE: I don't have any money.
But things like, "I haven't had breakfast," where "haven't" serves as a "helping verb" sounds perfectly fine to me.
Am I out of my mind on this? Is this just a part of normal US English that I have totally not stumbled upon before? Or does this sound weird?
Rather, I have a question about standard American English usages of contractions with the verb "to have".
I'm going to provide a number of sentences that would sound weird to me, and then rewrite them to what sounds "normal" for American English usage as I understand it. Please tell me if I am full of shit and the original phrasing sounds perfectly normal American English to you.
CONFUSING: I haven't any money.
REWRITE: I didn't have any money.
***
CONFUSING: I haven't any money.
REWRITE: I don't have any money.
But things like, "I haven't had breakfast," where "haven't" serves as a "helping verb" sounds perfectly fine to me.
Am I out of my mind on this? Is this just a part of normal US English that I have totally not stumbled upon before? Or does this sound weird?