aren't
American-
contraction of are not.
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contraction of am not (used interrogatively).
contraction
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are not
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informal (used in interrogative sentences) am not
Usage
The social unacceptability of ain't, the historical contraction of am not, has created a gap in the pattern of verbal contractions. I'm not, the alternative to I ain't, has no corresponding interrogative form except ain't I. In questions, ain't I is often avoided by the use of aren't I: I'm right, aren't I? Aren't I on the list? This aren't is simply a different outcome of the same historical development that yielded ain't, but the fact that it is spelled and pronounced like the contraction of are not (as in You are staying, aren't you? ) apparently gives it, for some, an acceptability that ain't lacks. The use of aren't I is objected to by others because a declarative counterpart, I aren't, does not exist. Many speakers, however, prefer aren't I to the uncontracted, rather formal am I not. See also ain't, contraction.
Etymology
Origin of aren't
As contraction of am not, a doublet of ain't (without raising of the vowel), spelling aren't by r-less speakers; ar was later substituted for the long a by speakers who regularly pronounce pre-consonantal r
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Which is not to say they aren’t out there — they are — but, as with domestic labor more broadly, a disproportionate share falls to mothers even when they have full-time jobs.
From Salon • Jun. 24, 2026
If you have no other sources of taxable income besides Social Security, you pay no federal taxes in retirement, as Roth distributions aren’t taxable.
From Barron's • Jun. 24, 2026
Go ahead and laugh if you aren’t currently a prisoner of the U.S. healthcare system.
From MarketWatch • Jun. 23, 2026
Consider cheating: You aren’t supposed to, but I packed a couple of books, albeit unexciting ones about Buddhist philosophy and nature.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 23, 2026
“Ah! You’re most welcome to LA. There’re so few girls our age here—I mean a teeny, tiny population—so a new face is really refreshing. You go to Lincoln High? Why aren’t you in school today?”
From "The Red Car to Hollywood" by Jennie Liu
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
