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"I've" is not normally used where it is spoken as "I have". This is similar to people using "an" in front of a word starting with "h" where the "h" is pronounce
by sidegrid 9y ago
"I've" is not normally used where it is spoken as "I have". This is similar to people using "an" in front of a word starting with "h" where the "h" is pronounced. Not sure why people do this.
- aaron-lebo 9y agoBecause language evolves?
- flukus 9y ago> "I've" is not normally used where it is spoken as "I have". Are you saying people don't use "I've" in spoken language? Because it see it regularly, "I've never" is even a drinking game.
- schoen 9y agoI think the distinction sidegrid was making is not actually about pronunciation but about the two uses of have as an auxiliary verb and as a verb indicating possession. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/have#Verb https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/have#Verb My impression is that standard American English only contracts the auxiliary verb ("I've biked up Mount Tamalpais") and not the possession verb (?"I've a pair of prescription sunglasses"). Hence "I've been diagnosed with bronchitis" (auxiliary) but not ?"I've a case of bronchitis" (possession). However, I think this rule is different in Commonwealth English, so we might just be witnessing a difference in English varieties.
- phillc73 9y agoAs a Commonwealth English speaker, I am not aware of a rule preventing contraction of the possessive verb "to have." Maybe there is, and I'd be interested to learn about it. Having said that, commonly I wouldn't say, "I've a case of bronchitis," rather just "I've bronchitis." It feels more natural to say "I have a case of bronchitis." However, this may just be personal preference.
- schoen 9y agoI'm now pretty sure that the rule is specific to American English.
- regularfry 9y ago"an" in front of "h-" is fine, although it's dying out. You'll usually see it where the first syllable of the "h-" word is unstressed.