ain't what it used to be
7
9.8
- idiom
- Informal
:
ya no es lo que era
- His health isn't what it used to be.
- hearing ain't what it used to be
- memory ain't what it used to be
- old ain't what it used to be
Examples
-
The restaurant's service isn't what it used to be since the new management took over.
-
Every month a small profit is made here, although I admit it is not what it used to be.
Fiction book (1991) -
My memory is not what it used to be.
-
The future is not what it used to be.
-
Teaching is not what it used to be.
Blog text (26) -
The position's not what it used to be.
-
It's not what it used to be, particularly in the suburbs.
Blog text (26) -
This village isn't what it used to be.
-
First class isn't what it used to be.
-
Finding a job these days isn't what it used to be.
Blog text (25)
Synonyms
3
6.7
Becoming less strong, less important, or less common
2
5.2
No longer at its best or in good condition
1
7.1
A person or thing that is much weaker and less impressive than before
1
7.9
Not interesting because people use it too often
Old and no longer useful or accepted today
Antonyms
How Good
Surface Forms
Morphology
ain't + what + it + used + to + be
The meaning is compositionally derivable: 'ain't' functions as a colloquial negative and 'what it used to be' literally refers to its former state ('how it was before'), so together they yield 'no longer as it was/less good than before.' This negative + former-state pattern is cross-linguistically common, so a B1 learner who knows the constituent meanings can infer the idiomatic sense (noting that 'ain't' is informal/regional).
Etymology
Ain't what it used to be comes from everyday speech where ain't is a short way to say 'is not' and used to be points to how something was before, so the phrase gives the image of something that was better in the past. That's why people say it to mean 'no longer as good, effective, or impressive as it once was'.