couldn't
Americancontraction
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.
Years before social media became a political battleground, Fincher was focused on something more basic — the fear that everyone else had been invited to a party you couldn’t get into.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 29, 2026
"So if they engaged in more practical work, that would help people who couldn't really complete school because it would help them learn actual skills that are useful for them."
From BBC • Jun. 29, 2026
He also allegedly raised large amounts of debt to fund prestige projects, even though he knew Zibo’s fiscal revenue couldn’t sustain such spending.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 28, 2026
When the time came for Monica to treat David like a real boy, she couldn’t muster the empathy.
From Salon • Jun. 28, 2026
“I’m waiting for the band. Last time, I got stuck way at the back and couldn’t see hardly anything. Blues tonight.”
From "Legendary Frybread Drive-In" by Cynthia Leitich Smith
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.
