In English, reduced forms are words that are commonly spoken and are not usually written. In order to sound like a native speaker, these reduced form words are important to recognize and understand as you will likely hear them often. This guide explains 25 commonly used reduced forms.

1. Cheat Sheet:25 Reduced Forms You Need to Know
Reduced forms are words that are not
written in English but that are frequently
used by native speakers. It’s important
to be able to recognize them so you can
understand spoken English and sound
more natural when you speak. Here are
some of the most useful reduced forms
to know.
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• Gonna, gotta, wanna, oughta = going to, got to, want to, ought to (“I’m gonna
go to the store.”)
• ’Cuz = because (“I’m going to stay in tonight ’cuz I’m tired.”)
• Dunno = don’t know (“I dunno what I want to do.”)
• Couldya, wouldya = could you, would you (“Couldya quiet down?”)
• Gimme, lemme = give me, let me (“Couldya gimme a piece of that cake,
please?”)
• Shoulda/woulda/coulda = should have, would have, could have (“We shoulda
picked up a birthday card.”)
• Kinda/sorta = kind of, sort of (“I kinda like this song, but the chorus is
annoying.”)
• Lotta/lottsa = lot of, lots of (“There sure are a lotta tourists and lottsa
souvenir shops around here.”)
• Mighta/might’ve = might have, followed by a consonant (“She mighta gone
yesterday”), might have, followed by a vowel (“He might’ve agreed to go if
you hadn’t told him how much tickets cost.”)
• How are ya? = How are you? (“I haven’t seen you in weeks! How are ya?”)
• Whaddya = what do you (“Whaddya want to do with your day off?”)
• Whatcha = what are you (“Whatcha planning to do?”)

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• C’mon = come on (“C’mon, let’s go!”)
• Jus’ = just (“That’s jus’ perfect.”)
• See ya = see you (“See ya later!”)
Keep in mind that you should not use these reduced forms in formal or business
settings, but you can try them out when you’re talking to friends.
If you’d like to learn additional reduced forms so that you can make your English
sound more natural, hiring an English tutor is a great place to start.