couldn't

American

[kood-nt] / ˈkʊd nt /

contraction of could not.

couldn't British

/ ˈkʊdənt /

contraction

could not

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

couldn't Idioms

More idioms and phrases containing couldn't

can't
hurt a flea, couldn't

Usage

See care, contraction.

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.

American car companies couldn’t pursue joint-ventures with Chinese automakers.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 29, 2026

Now comes an off day, which Freeman said couldn’t come at a better time.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 29, 2026

Earnings from Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman couldn’t turn the tide.

From Barron's • Apr. 29, 2026

One of the most popular pieces of conventional investing wisdom couldn’t be more misguided, according to a recent analysis from Bloomberg Intelligence.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 29, 2026

“I couldn’t have done this without you, Lexie. You know that, right?”

From "Red Flags and Butterflies" by Sheryl Azzam

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023