Dear Mr. Sneeze,
You are correct.
�What�s he/she look like?� = �What does he/she look like?�
I have spent a considerable time researching every Contraction it is possible to make, for a Worksheet which I am preparing.
Randolph Quirk et al, �A Comprehensive Grammar of the English Language�, page 132, state: �Occasionally, does is contracted in informal style to �s, for example, �What�s it matter?� (�What does it matter?�)
Here are some sentences written by me this evening, impromptu, in very informal style, using the word �does�, in the contracted form. I agree that they are unusual, but they are not impossible.
1. How�s he manage to do it? How does he manage to do it?
2. What�s she do for a job? What does she do for a job?
3. When�s he start his job? When does he start his job?
4. Where�s she work? Where does she work?
5. Which�s he use most often, this or that? Which does he use most often, this or that?
6. Who�s she resemble? Who does she resemble?
7. To whom�s he owe the money? To whom does he owe the money?
8. Why�s she do this every time? Why does she do this every time?
I hope that this helps you.
Les Douglas
P.S. �Bless you!
)
