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  •  The dictionary says that "ain’t" is an example of nonstandard English.
  •  Standard English follows rules of grammar and usage that people  learn in school.
  •  Nonstandard English includes words or expressions that violate these rules.
  •  "Ain’t" is an attempt to combine the words "am" and "not" in a way similar to the way that "don’t" combines the words "do" and "not."
  •  Experts say it first appeared in English in 1778.
  •  They say people in that time period also developed the use of "don’t" and "won’t."
  •  Later, grammar experts criticized the use of "ain’t" because it was used by uneducated people. 
  •  In the nineteenth century, it was criticized because it was not a combination of two words.
  •  The meaning of "ain’t" also expanded to include "is not," "has not" and "have not," as in the expression "I ain’t got any."
  •  Grammar experts and teachers continue to criticize the use of "ain’t."
  •  They say it is slang and should not be used in conversation.
  •  Yet sometimes it seems to be the right word to use for informal speech.
  •  It has been used in many expressions such as "You ain’t seen nothing yet," "Say it ain’t so" and "Ain’t that the truth!"
  •  People also use it in a joking way.
  •  However, it is not used in writing unless the writer is trying to express a kind of informal relation among a group of people.