coulda

English

Etymology

Written form of a reduction of could have.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈkʊdə/, [ˈkʰʊd.ə]

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ʊdə

Verb

coulda

1. (colloquial) Contraction of could have.

   You coulda told him the truth.

Usage notes

Like other similarly formed contractions, speakers only use coulda to replace the modal sense of could have, i.e. where have precedes a past participle: We coulda seen each other. They do not use it to replace could followed by the verb have used lexically, e.g. *We coulda coffee. See also gonna.

Synonyms

• could of
• could've

Derived terms

• woulda, coulda, shoulda

Related terms

• couldna
• shoulda
• woulda
• mighta
• musta

Jamaican Creole

Etymology

From English could.

Verb

coulda

1. could

   Yuh coulda mek dem guh home.

   You could let them go home.