Why do we say “seen Jim?” and omit “have you”?

Question

In some sentences we don't use some words. For example, instead of.

Do you want a ride?

we say

Want a ride?

Instead of

I'm just coming, hang on!

we say

just coming, hang on!

Instead of.

Have you seen Jim?

we say

Seen Jim?

Is there any rule for who we can make them short?

You can shorten things when the part you're omitting is so formulaic or obvious that it will be understood implicitly (i.e. without being said). This is known as "conversational deletion". — Dan Bron, Sep 26 '15 at 20:32
There are several questions with the conversational-deletion tag with answers that explain this; just click on the tag. — StoneyB on hiatus, Sep 26 '15 at 21:20
@StoneyB is being overly modest. If you click that tag and sort by "votes", then click the highest-voted question and read the highest-voted answer, you'll find the best explanation of this concept on ELL, with pointers to even more material on EL&U. — Dan Bron, Sep 26 '15 at 21:25
@DanBron Everything I know about CD I got from John Lawler's posts on ELU. He directed the dissertation which originally described CD. — StoneyB on hiatus, Sep 26 '15 at 21:35

Hans Lemurson · Accepted Answer · 2015-09-27 02:41:43Z

2

If something ends up sounding like a grunt or something inaudible when said quickly, then it will usually get omitted over time.

I personally tend to stay around the "y' seen Jim" level of omission.

answered Sep 27 '15 at 2:41

Hans Lemurson

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