Ellipsis and Substitution: Omitting and Replacing Words in Speech and Writing

If the context allows it, it is often possible to omit verbs from a text by replacing them with auxiliary or modal verbs. Take the following example:

Nobody thought I should say anything but I said something.

The words highlighted in red sound very repetitive and, therefore, very unnatural to an English speaker. What you can do is replace them with an auxiliary verb which should be in the past simple, in this case.

Nobody thought I should say anything but I did.

It’s important that the auxiliary that you use corresponds with the tense of the words being replaced. Therefore, simple tenses should be replaced with do, continuous tenses use be, and perfect tenses are replaced by have, as shown below:

I’m not having any fun but my friend certainly is having fun.

He said he had told me but he certainly hadn’t told me.

It is important to note that, when finishing with an auxiliary verb, you can’t contract the subject and auxiliary. For example:

“Can you finish that work?”  “I have” not ‘I’ve“

We can also omit any words after a modal verb if they are repetitive. For example:

I’ve been told not to dye my hair red but I think I should dye my hair red.

In the following exercise, fill the boxes with an auxiliary or modal verb to complete the sentence whilst avoiding repetition. You may need to use a negative form.