[sourcery]

Contractions don't change the number of semantic words. According to Cambridge English: Proficiency (CPE) Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs):

Do contractions count as one word or two?

Contracted words count as the number of words they would be if they were not contracted. For example, isn’t, didn’t, I’m, I’ll are counted as two words (replacing is not, did not, I am, I will). Where the contraction replaces one word (e.g. can’t for cannot), it is counted as one word.

Told you I was pedant.

[Celtic Conservative]

Indeed. Comment retracted.

CC

[William Tell]

sourcery said: "Told you I was pedant. "

How can one justify counting a contraction of two words as being still two words and yet count compounding of two words as just one word; i.e. "cannot"? A count of letters would seem to justify just the reverse.

[mabarker1]

PULL OUR PEOPLE OUT.

MAKE A GLASS BEACH.

WAIT 20 years and run Bulldozers over the area and grind the glass back into Sand and make a Resort.