29232
I understand that えらい is an adjective which means distinguished/famous etc.
Then I came across this conversation

> 「おいらよりマシかぁ、なぁんだ、じゃあえらいなぁ。」
>
> 「別にえらかァないよ...」
>
> "Preferable to me!? What! Well, I'm distinguished."
>
> "You're not particularly distinguished."

(all the extra あ and ア are supposed to be in small font. Any one know how to
do that?)

The second sentence led me to think that there must also be a verb えらく ->
えらかない. But I can't find it in any dictionary. What's going on in the second
sentence?
CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-11-14T17:05:16.233
29230
2015-11-14T21:38:33.890
2020-06-17T08:18:27.500
-1
7944
question
grammar colloquial-language particle-は contractions i-adjectives
えらかない - strange conjugation of えらい
えらかァない is a colloquial, collapsed way of saying えらくはない.  
えらく(連用形/continuative form of えらい) + は(係助詞/binding particle) + negative ない

> 「おいらよりマシかぁ、なぁんだ、じゃあえらいなぁ。」  
>  「別にえらかァないよ...」

"Better than me? Well, **you're** distinguished/great, then."  
" **I'm** not particularly distinguished/great..."
CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-11-14T17:46:32.713
29232
2015-11-14T17:55:57.970
2015-11-14T17:55:57.970
9831
9831
29230
answer