The Quadruple Contraction

Friday, July 22, 2005 | 1:15 am

Yes, we finally came up with one. Okay, not so much we as Sam. Here it is: y’all’dn’t've. Which derives, of course, from “you all would not have.” Here’s an example of using it in a sentence: “If y’all’dn’t've stayed out so late last night, y’all’dn’t be so tired this morning.” Discuss.

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10 Responses to "The Quadruple Contraction"

  1. Patrick Fitzgerald says:
    July 22nd, 2005 at 9:49 am

    You need to post an audio clip with the proper pronunciation. Then I can properly say “If y’all’dn’t've posted that audio file, I wouldn’t be using this word so much.”

  2. duane says:
    July 22nd, 2005 at 10:52 am

    Are we actually trying to make people talk MORE country by doing this? hmmm….

  3. Amber says:
    July 22nd, 2005 at 10:55 am

    Well, then I guess it is time for me to take the AudioBlogger plunge…

  4. Joe says:
    July 22nd, 2005 at 1:30 pm

    I don’t mind the pronounciation so much left up to the imagination. My first guess at pronouncing the word made it sound like a Yiddish greeting.

    Yal-dun-tuf

  5. Amber says:
    July 22nd, 2005 at 1:49 pm

    That’s pretty much it, Joe! Good job. We were pronouncing the final sound as more of a ‘v’ than an ‘f’, but as long as it’s a fricative of some sort, that’s really all that matters.

  6. Patrick Fitzgerald says:
    July 22nd, 2005 at 2:49 pm

    heh heh you said “fricative”

  7. Joe says:
    July 22nd, 2005 at 3:11 pm

    Well… the thing is, I don’t generally think of southerners as using hard consonants (like t’s and d’s) very well — hence, it’s not “ATlanTa;” it’s “‘Lana” or “A’Lana.”

    Therefore, y’all’dn’t've is “Y’all-’n-duv” in southern, with a barely detectable “d,” but would be “Yal-DUN-tuf” in a Yiddish accent.

    OK.. this is too much fun. Back to trying to learn PHP…

  8. Amber says:
    July 22nd, 2005 at 3:42 pm

    Back to trying to learn PHP

    You wanna talk about fun? ‘Cause that’s some fun right there!

  9. dipika says:
    July 22nd, 2005 at 4:21 pm

    i’m so glad no one has come into my office right now… i’ve been trying out different pronunciations to see what sounds right. y’all-n-dv is what sounds best to my southern ears ;)

  10. dipika says:
    July 22nd, 2005 at 4:23 pm

    forgot to say, well done! I shall try to use this in a sentence today, with one of the Jersey transplants around here. hee.