where did wont come from?

Question

Won't = will not? it doesn't make any sense! Does anyone have an answer for this besides "I guess it's because......."

Answer 1

You're right -- if it actually CAME from "will not". But, in fact, it didn't.

It happened something like this:

In Old and Middle English, the form of the verb changed according to whether it was used for the first, second and third person, singular and plural,etc. Many examples are found in the Oxford English Dictionary -- forms like wile, willo, uillo, will, wulle, wule, wolle, woll, and wool. "Wull" and "woll" were still in common use in the 19th century, before "will" finally competely won out as THE standard form.

For the negative English had the same basic forms --such as wynnot, wonnot, woonnot, wo'not, wonot, winnot, we'n't, willn't, willot, won't. Some of these, again, were still in use in the 19th century (Charlotte Bronte used "willn't" in an 1849 book.) But in THIS case, the form "won't" ended up winning the field.

Why? Well it is a bit easier to say (L + N is more difficult to pronounce - which is why "shall not" became "shan't"), and perhaps it was influenced by similar contracted forms, esp."don't"

Also note that an "o"-type vowel is found in another form of this verb, "would".

http://www.straightdope.com/mailbag/mwont.html

Answer 2

Would not. Will not is another version of this in some other verb sense.

Its just how it spelled that confuses you.. willn't wouldn't make sense now would it?