'tis

9.9

A short old-fashioned way to say 'it is' often used in poems and songs

auxiliary
/tɪz/

Archaic

: es

In the old song, the chorus begins with 'tis the season to be merry.

Examples

He recited, ''tis but a scratch,' quoting the famous line from the play.
'tis the season to be jolly.
'Tis the night before Christmas, and all through the house, not a creature was stirring.
'Tis a beautiful day!
'Tis the night before Christmas, and all through the house, not a creature was stirring.
'tis the season to be jolly.
'Tis a beautiful day!

Antonyms

isn't

Informal

1.0

A short way to say that something is not true or not happening, used in negative sentences and questions

Surface Forms

'tis third person singular

tis third person singular

'Tis third person singular

Morphology

'tis = it + is (transparent) = it + is

'Tis is a straightforward contraction of 'it is', so its meaning is directly recoverable from the components for learners who know them.

Etymology

'Tis is a short, old form of it is that people often used in songs and poems to keep the rhythm. So when you read 'tis, it simply means 'it is'.