http://www.englishforums.com/English/GeneralEnglishGrammarQuestions/Forum12.htmAsk your questions on grammar and get your sentence checked. We answer lots of different types of general English grammar questions here.enCSMOD (Build: 3273.32735)http://www.englishforums.com/English/PleaseHelp/llzm/post.htm#57319Thu, 25 Nov 2004 02:33:55 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:57319CalifJim0http://www.englishforums.com/English/PleaseHelp/llzm/post.htm#57319http://www.englishforums.com/English/comments12-57319.xmlAs you probably already know, these reduced forms occur in speech, not in writing (except to illustrate how to say them, of course). <br /> <br />"wanna" is "want to"; "gotta" is "got to", "gonna" is "going to". <br /> <br />I want to give my Mom something nice for her birthday. <br />Said: I wanna give my Mom ... <br /> <br />I have got to get started right now, or I'm going to be late! <br />Said: I've gotta get started right now, or I'm gonna be late! <br /> <br />By coincidence, you've chosen three forms which are accompanied by three different pronoun-verb contraction series: <br /> <br />"wanna" is preceded by a simple subject pronoun: <br />I wanna, we wanna, you wanna, they wanna. Not used for "he" or "she", and other third person singular situations: he wants to, she wants to <br /> <br />"gotta" is used after a pronoun contracted with "have" or "has": <br />I've gotta, we've gotta, you've gotta, they've gotta; <br />he's gotta, she's gotta <br /> <br />Although technically incorrect, "gotta" is often preceded by the simple subject pronoun (the same as "wanna"). I don't recommend this! <br /> <br />"gonna" is used after a pronoun contracted with "am", "is", or "are": <br />I'm gonna, we're gonna, you're gonna, they're gonna; <br />he's gonna, she's gonna <br /> <br />"gonna", but not "wanna" and "gotta", is used in the past: <br />we were gonna, you were gonna, they were gonna; I was gonna, he was gonna, she was gonna <br /> <br />Note: the 's in "he's gotta" means "has"; the 's in "he's gonna" means "is". <br /> <br /><img src="/emoticons/emotion-1.gif" alt="Smile [:)]" /> <br /> <br />CJ <br />http://www.englishforums.com/English/PleaseHelp/llzl/post.htm#57318Thu, 25 Nov 2004 02:33:39 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:57318asdf1http://www.englishforums.com/English/PleaseHelp/llzl/post.htm#57318http://www.englishforums.com/English/comments12-57318.xmlThese are very casual, informal versions of "want to," "got to," and "going to." It's that simple. <br /> <br />I wanna close now as I gotta go, so I'm gonna say, "Bye."http://www.englishforums.com/English/PleaseHelp/llzj/post.htmThu, 25 Nov 2004 02:08:38 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:57316Anny2http://www.englishforums.com/English/PleaseHelp/llzj/post.htmhttp://www.englishforums.com/English/comments12-57316.xmlI want to know how to use "wanna", "gotta", "gonna". <br />Thanks before.