The great 'Ain't' debate.

[xXgoth_girl12Xx]

"Ain't isn't a word!"
That is something my mother, who always brags about being an english major, says to me whenever I use that word. My father says that to me, too.
So, let's settle this once and for all-
Is 'Ain't' a word or is it not?
Ain't stands for 'are not', so you could use it in a sentence and be grammatically correct, right?
Ex-
"No you ain't."
Which translate to-
"No you are not."
Of course, it makes you sound very uneducated.
Or you could use the word 'aren't'.
Ex-
"No you aren't."
Which means the same thing. Also, wouldn't 'Ain't' be in the Oxford English Dictionary?
This is what the dictionary on my computer defines it as-

ain't |ānt| informal
contraction of
• am not; are not; is not : if it ain't broke, don't fix it. [ORIGIN: originally representing London dialect.]
• has not; have not : they ain't got nothing to say. [ORIGIN: from dialect hain't.]
USAGE The use of ain't was widespread in the 18th century and is still perfectly normal in many dialects and informal contexts in both North America and Britain. Today, however, it does not form part of standard English and should not be used in formal contexts.

So, what do you think? A word or not?  

[teh brittie]

I'm from Texas. My grandmother would always correct me when I used the word ain't as a child. However, I've found it many times in publication, in casual use. Language is a mercurial thing, and change occurs often. It once was not a word, but it has become one with the passage of time. Verdict? it's a word.  

[Swell Sundae]

In my opinion, it's one of those words that are just OUT THERE, meaning we have no idea what lines it falls into, the acceptable or the unacceptable. It's accepted when we speak to people we know well and are allowed to be lazy (I think) but is unacceptable whenever it is used with strangers and context of essays and the like.  

[DarkElf27]

It's dialect. Not accent, but it goes in the same field. Whatchoo, gonna, idn't, ain't, all terms that come as part of dialect. Not correct as part of absolute proper english, but I never have a problem with them as part of casual conversation, textual or not. I tend to use a couple myself at times.  

[MyOwnBestCritic]

It is a word, though a highly informal one. While you may use it with your friends, saying it during an interview or writing it in a formal paper is not acceptable.

Many other languages have different verb conjugations for formality. Be glad it's just a few words in English. 3nodding  

[Black rose shika]

It is a word. It is an improper word. Are'nt is the proper conjunction for Are Not. I do not believe ain't is a word because ; is an i in Are Not ? No !  

[Dragon Razikale]

Well, you answered your own question because aren't is the correct way of are not, but joined with a comma. Similar to don't, etc. Ain't is derived from the Southern dialect, which changed the sound of aren't to ain't and due to the fact that it was published in books due to Southern characters the word ain't usage obviously increased. Ain't is not actually a word, similar to other mispronounced words. Though, this is just on what I think/have heard somewhere. Therefore, aren't is a word and ain't is not a word.  

[Addie-Lynn]

actually, to be honest, i consider it a word.
I used to get the same lecture about it not being a word,
until finding it in the dictionary one day.
but it might depend where you are and your dialect etc..
its in the canadian dictionary though.  

[Falhalterra]

Still, you wouldn't find me using 'ain't'.

Only when it's 3 AM in the morning and I'm half brain-dead.  

[Tengaii]

I ain't got nothin' to say to this here topic.  

[corvusXcorax]

I always figured it was the abbreviation of "ain not", which, of course, isn't a word. sweatdrop But hey, I never use it unless I'm being weird and putting on an accent...or something. ninja  

[Kairi_12]

DarkElf27

It's dialect. Not accent, but it goes in the same field. Whatchoo, gonna, idn't, ain't, all terms that come as part of dialect. Not correct as part of absolute proper english, but I never have a problem with them as part of casual conversation, textual or not. I tend to use a couple myself at times.

I agree.  

[Zemedelphos]

In my oppinion, ain't is a real contraction, with many meanings, and is easy to tell which meaning is intended by context.

A few examples being:
Well I ain't gonna to it. (meaning am not)
He ain't listening. (is not)
Ain't you Italian? (meaning Are you not)

Coming from the south, I use this word profusely, and belive that it is an acctuall word. One of my classmates looked it up a few years ago, and found it.  

[Natsuri]

My mother, also an English major in the social arts, frowns upon my usage of that word.

For me, the aforementioned expression defies description. Informal usage, yes. Casual usage, at your discretion. Formal usage is often discouraged. confused

It's not really the word itself that's taboo, it's mainly the usage that turns heads in the wrong way. In a word, context.  

[Annikaya]

I think the real question is how we define "word." People say "ain't isn't a word" but a word is any unit of language that carries meaning. In that sense, it is a word. Is it correct grammar? I took a course on the history of the English language and the word did come from a valid contraction; it didn't just pop up as a slang word. Is it still politically correct to use? Somehow people got it into their heads that it wasn't a word and so it's not ok to use-it shows a lack of education to most people. But it IS a word!