Cambridge Grammar of English Hardback with cd-rom a comprehensive Guide

OTHER VERBS

532

Be

532a

With the verb be, although both types of negated form exist in BrE and AmE, there

is a stronger preference in AmE for the negated forms with not in both the present

and the past tense (e.g. is/’s not, were not), rather than the contracted forms isn’t,

aren’t

, wasn’t and weren’t. Isn’t, in particular, is many times more frequent in BrE

than in AmE:

Tim 

isn’t working there anymore. 

(BrE)

Joe

’s not coming back anymore. 

(preferred AmE form)

Have and have got

532b

The present tense form of have with got used for possession is more than twice as

frequent in spoken BrE as in AmE:

I’ve got one sister and one brother. 

(BrE)

I have a cousin who never married. 

(AmE)

Go (and)

532c

The AmE equivalent to informal BrE go and + infinitive without to occurs often

without and:

Where’s your towel? Is it in the drawer? 

Go and see if you can find it. 

(BrE)

I actually hadn’t heard anything about it, and some friends called up and said

do you want to 

go see this movie, and, and they said it starred Meryl Streep and

Mel Brooks. 

(AmE)