*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of aren't

Etymology tree Proto-Germanic *arun? Old English earon Middle English aren English are English n’t English aren't From are + n’t.

2 source sectionsExtended source reportWiktionary original ↗
In this entry · 2 source sections

The source etymologies

Wiktionary via Kaikki / Wiktextract

The source reports below are imported and unreviewed by *SET-U. Separate numbered origins and differing source variants are preserved; agreement within this extraction is not independent corroboration.

Source etymology 1

Original entry ↗
verb

are not (negative auxiliary)

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Etymology tree Proto-Germanic *arun? Old English earon Middle English aren English are English n’t English aren't From are + n’t.

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "ety",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": ":af",
        "3": "are",
        "4": "-n't<alt:n’t>",
        "text": "+",
        "tree": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "Etymology tree\nProto-Germanic *arun?\nOld English earon\nMiddle English aren\nEnglish are\nEnglish n’t\nEnglish aren't\n[Appendix:Glossary#inherited|Inherited]] from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Old English\", \"term\" : \"earon\", \"status\" : \"inline\", \"lang\" : \"ang\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Middle English\", \"term\" : \"aren\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"enm\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"are\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"en\" }, { \"alt\" : \"n’t\", \"children\" : [ ], \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"-n't\", \"status\" : \"missing\", \"lang\" : \"en\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"From\", \"is_group\" : true, \"keyword\" : \"affix\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"aren't\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"en\" }\" data-lang=\"en\" data-title=\"aren't\">\nFrom are + n’t."
    },
    {
      "name": "ety",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": ":af",
        "3": "are",
        "4": "-n't<alt:n’t>",
        "text": "+",
        "tree": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "Etymology tree\nProto-Germanic *arun?\nOld English earon\nMiddle English aren\nEnglish are\nProto-Indo-European *né\nProto-Germanic *ne\nProto-West Germanic *ne\nProto-Indo-European *h₂ey-\nProto-Indo-European *-u\nProto-Indo-European *h₂óyu\nProto-Indo-European *-osinflu.\nProto-Germanic *aiwaz\nProto-West Germanic *aiw\nuniv.\nProto-West Germanic *naiw\nProto-Indo-European *wekʷ-\nProto-Indo-European *-tis\nProto-Indo-European *wékʷtisder.?\nProto-Indo-European *weǵʰ-\nProto-Indo-European *-tis\nProto-Indo-European *wéǵʰtisder.?\nProto-Germanic *wihtą\nProto-West Germanic *wiht\nProto-West Germanic *naiwwiht\nOld English nāwiht\nOld English *nōht\nMiddle English nought\nMiddle English not\nEnglish notder.\nEnglish n’t\nEnglish aren't\nFrom are + n’t."
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "*arun",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/arun"
    ],
    [
      "earon",
      "earon#Old_English"
    ],
    [
      "aren",
      "aren#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "are",
      "are#English"
    ],
    [
      "n’t",
      "-n't#English"
    ],
    [
      "are",
      "are#English"
    ],
    [
      "n’t",
      "-n't#English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "verb",
      "glosses": [
        "are not (negative auxiliary)"
      ],
      "tags": [],
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Source etymology 2

Original entry ↗
verb

A contraction of “am not”, used e.g. in the construction "aren’t I?"

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Spelling replacement of the homonym an’t.

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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  "templates": [],
  "links": [
    [
      "an’t",
      "an't"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "verb",
      "glosses": [
        "A contraction of “am not”, used e.g. in the construction \"aren’t I?\""
      ],
      "tags": [
        "colloquial"
      ],
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  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
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}

Where this record stops

This page does not supply an independently verified sound-change sequence, first-use manuscript or complete family tree unless a cited analysis explicitly establishes one. Missing detail here is a limit of this record—not a claim that humanity knows nothing more.

An older meaning does not determine what a word must mean today. Follow the sources, preserve disagreements, and keep ancestry separate from interpretation.

Contribute located evidence for aren't →

Source and snapshot

Imported from Wiktionary contributors; extracted by Tatu Ylonen / Wiktextract / Kaikki.org. Selected fields are reformatted and grouped; wording, source identity and etymology sections are retained. CC-BY-SA-4.0 applies to the imported source material.

Dump: 2026-10-01 · Extracted: 2026-10-30. These are snapshot dates, not the word’s first attestation or the page’s revision date.

Source entry and bibliography ↗Wiktionary revision history ↗Acquisition and rights ledger
Machine-source provenance
Source SHA-256
5ff2c072f8099f2d2ce484bd6957bf179f046d2ad37bc36555edf8bb84cb5291
Import run
73216b9a9b78ed3830994bf853103716f5a4dc57099e371e9f8fdc468facca26
Permanent entry ID
w-YXJlbid0