shoulda
English
Etymology
Written form of a reduction of should have.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ˈʃʊdə/
Audio (Southern England): (file) - Rhymes: -ʊdə
Verb
shoulda (past subjunctive)
- (colloquial) Contraction of should + have.
- You shoulda told him the truth.
- 2009, Kiyohiko Azuma, “Genius y'all...”, in Stephen Paul, transl., edited by Yen Press, Azumanga Daioh Omnibus, New York City, →ISBN, page 34:
- Ah shoulda known bettern't' challenge a genius!
Usage notes
Like other similarly formed contractions, speakers only use shoulda to replace the modal sense of should have, i.e. where have precedes a past participle: 
You shoulda gone. They do not use it to replace should followed by the verb have used lexically, e.g. 
You shoulda some patience. See also gonna.