Learn English – when can you substitute ‘s for is

grammar

What is the rule that you have to follow to be able to use 's instead of is?

For example, you can say Jill's very happy, but you can't say However happy Jill's I'd still like to tell her another joke.

Best Answer

As per John Lawler's comment,

You can't use a contraction at the end of a clause.
The word at the end of the clause "However happy Jill's" is stressed, and you can't stress a suffix,
so you have to stress "is" and thus can't contract it.

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