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Ask for help > WANTA
WANTA
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ohermann
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WANTA
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Hey, dear colleagues,
I have come across this word � wanta � and I would like to know the meaning of the word. Could you help me figure this out? It was in this context (a governor of a small Southern state is giving a campaign speech):
��Hey, you know what? I�m going to do something really outrageous here. I�m gonna tell you the truth.�
Cheers and laughter. �Yeah, I know what you�re thinking: He must really be desperate to wanta do that.� More laughter. �
Is it a misspelling? Shouldn�t be there �wanna�? Thanks a lot for your help.
BTW, it�s from the novel Primary Colors by �Anonymous� (published in 1996). |
6 Dec 2011
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MoodyMoody
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Either way, it isn �t a standard spelling, but an attempt to spell out casual pronunciation. "Wanta" is actually a bit more careful pronunciation than "wanna." It �s rare in American English that we actually pronounce the word "to" as /tu/. The vowel gets reduced to a schwa. |
6 Dec 2011
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Daisee
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I think it is an infrequently spelt informal form of �want to �. Most peeps just write �wanna � even where the �t � is pronounced. |
6 Dec 2011
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yume05
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Yeah. It �s just "want to". The more common way of spelling this colloquial is "wanna". I �ve never seen "wanta", but it makes sense, like someone trying to spell a word they �ve never read before and sounding it out. |
7 Dec 2011
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joy2bill
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Wanna will be normal English in a few year �s time. We will all be teaching it as an exception to the rule, just like �taught � instead of �teached �. Painful, isn �t it! |
7 Dec 2011
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