Learn English – “I have no clue” vs. “I haven’t a clue” vs. “I am clueless”

differencephrase-usage

Is there a difference between the phrase

I have no clue…

and

I haven't a clue…

as well as

I am clueless…

For instance if someone said:

What is wrong with this?

Which of these could be used to answer?

Best Answer

I'm not a fan of Ngrams, so my answer is based on personal opinion and experience.

Although I suppose that the three phrases would be perfectly understood in context, if I were to use one of them I'd go for the first one (I have no clue) or for a modified version of the second (I don't have a clue or I haven't got a clue).

I wouldn't use the second phrase as it is because in negative sentences the verb have is normally used either in conjunction with got, thus being an auxiliary, or preceded by "don't"/"doesn't"/"didn't" as any other verb.

As for clueless, OALD states that it is an informal, disapproving adjective which means "very stupid; not able to understand or do something", which is a deviation from the meaning of the previous sentences.

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