Ellipsis in speech – 3
Ellipsis in speech occurs between people who are confident the other person can understand the message even if some details are left out.
In informal conversation we can often leave out
- the subject
‘Didn’t catch the train’. = ‘I / We didn’t catch the train.’
"Saw John. Thinks England will lose." = "I saw John. He thinks England will lose."
- subjects and auxiliary verbs
"Ready yet?" "Finished?" = "Are you ready yet?" "Have you finished yet?")
- sometimes articles and determiners and the dummy subject ‘there is ‘ there are’
"Any petrol in the car?" = "Is there any petrol in the car?"
"Some problem with the police." = "There’s some problem with the police."
Ellipsis often occurs
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with verbs such as see, hear, and think
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especially in questions and replies
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in questions; "have you" and "do / did you" can often be dropped.
"See Kate yesterday?" = "Did you see Kate yesterday?"
"Heard about the manager? Taken all the cash and run off." = "Have you heard about the manager? He has taken all the cash and (has) run off.’
‘Spoken to Jane lately?’ = ‘Have you spoken to Jane lately?’
"Think the match’ll go ahead?" = "Do you think the match will go ahead?"
Before questions such as "Do you want…..?" and "Would you like …..?" and "Do you / Did you / Would you….?" can be dropped, and often "Have you?"
"More tea?" or "Like some more tea?" = Would you like some more tea?
"Get the cheque?" = "Did you get the cheque?"
"Paid the bill?" = "Have you paid the bill?"
NB
Usually articles and determiners, possessives etc, can only be left out if the item described is the subject of the sentence.
"Canteen’s shut." = "The canteen’s shut."
But "Shall we go to the canteen?"