hadn't

/ˈhæd.n̩t/

A form of had — Used to form the past perfect tense, expressing an action that took place prior to a reference point that is itself in the past.

OriginEnglish not ← Middle English not ← Old English *nōht →
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Meanings

verb

alternative dialectal nonstandard hadna · alternative dialectal nonstandard hadnae · alternative hant · alternative hedn't

  1. abbreviationcontractioninformalContraction of had + not (negative auxiliary).

    Hadn't we better apologize? Surely we hadn't to be late.

Origin

  1. Englishhad
  2. Proto-Indo-European*né
  3. Proto-Germanic*ne
  4. Proto-West Germanic*ne
  5. Proto-Indo-European*h₂ey-
  6. Proto-Indo-European*h₂óyu
  7. Proto-Germanic*aiwaz
  8. Proto-West Germanic*aiw
  9. Proto-West Germanic*naiw
  10. Proto-Indo-European*wekʷ-
  11. Proto-Indo-European*wékʷtisder.?
  12. Proto-Indo-European*weǵʰ-
  13. Proto-Indo-European*wéǵʰtisder.?
  14. Proto-Germanic*wihtą
  15. Proto-West Germanic*wiht
  16. Proto-West Germanic*naiwwiht
  17. Old Englishnāwiht
  18. Old English*nōht
  19. Middle Englishnought
  20. Middle Englishnot
  21. Englishnot
  22. Englishhadn't

From had + -n't.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

hadn't. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/hadn't

MLA

“hadn't.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/hadn't. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “hadn't,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/hadn't.

Source: hadn't on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.