Re: Negative of "used to" in Australian English
- From: "Adrian Bailey" <dadge@xxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Sat, 30 Jun 2007 12:19:38 GMT
"Peter Moylan" <peter@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:138bkl18ddp2857@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Michael West wrote:
Apparently "usedn't to" occasionally pops up in the speech of
Australians of a certain age. I haven't heard it myself, but it's
been reported to me.
My new CD-ROM version of the Macquarie dictionary (4th ed.) gives
"usen't" as a headword, defined as "negative of used". It appears not
to mention "usedn't" at all.
I use "usen't to" myself. I'm fully aware that "usedn't to" would be
more logical, but I find the latter impossible to pronounce.
Let me correct that. Somwhere in the back of my mind is the notion that
the word is really "usen'd". That's how I pronounce it, that's how I
think of it, but it's a spelling that never caught on.
What you use is "usedn't to". Pronounce it any way you like, it doesn't
affect the spelling. That's what English is like.
Adrian
.
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