| 词组 | shan't |
| 释义 | shan't Shan't is a standard contraction of shall not. It came into use sometime during the 17th century, along with such other negative contractions as an't, don't, han't, and won't, most of which displeased commentators in the 18th and 19th centuries, and some of which are still usage issues. Shan't began to appear in print in the 1660s, but not all at once. Thomas Shadwell used shan't in 1668, but the OED shows Dryden using shan'not that same year, and in 1673 Aphra Behn was still using shall not I. The forms shan't, which is still predominant, and sha'n't have both been used from the 17th century to the 20th. An occasional disciple of George Bernard Shaw may produce shant. The few American commentators who mention shan't agree that it is more common in British English than in American English. Our evidence confirms their observation. Here are some American examples, two older and two newer. • I sha'n't apologize for the Whitmanesque —Robert Frost, letter, 19 Dec. 1911 • I shan't pretend to be full of jollity —Alexander Woollcott, letter, 12 Jan. 1918 • I shan't offer any training tips —Donald McCaig, Blair & Ketchum's Country Jour., June 1984 • ... the next year in which outlays shan't exceed the receipts —Vermont Royster, Wall Street Jour., 4 Aug. 1982 You might wonder if shan't, as a contraction from shall, follows the old rules about shall and will. About all we can say is that sometimes it does, and sometimes it does not. That is about all we can say for shall and will, too, to be truthful. See shall, will. |
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