Why is hanged used instead of hung

Is hanged or hung correct? Are they interchangeable? If not, what is the difference between the two? In this post, I want to go over some basic tenses of the verb hang , illustrate them to you with example sentences, and give you a few tips to remember when to use which one for the future.

Hang , of course, is the present tense form of the verb. This little tale illustrates one of the few times when hung can be used when referring to a person Tam the local drunk is draped over the bar in his local when the door opens and this figure wearing a black frock coat and a black homburg comes in, glides over to a table and sits down.

The barman pours a glass of milk and takes it over to that guy at the table. When he gets back behing the bar Tam says, "Milk! Is there something you know that they don't? I think we should be told! Warsaw Will Jan Hairy Scot - You've got a thing about this, haven't you? Nice story. But table service in a Scottish bar? Hung emerged as pp. WW Not so much a thing about hung, more about illustrating the differences between hung and hanged.

I remember during the 60s a Scottish folk singer, as part of his intro to a song about Timothy Evans who had just recently been posthumously pardoned, making the comment "He must have been chuffed to his knickers, coz they hung him eleven years ago".

As for the table service: just a little bit of "poetic licence". Your phrase "chuffed to the knickers" reminds me that playwright Harold Pinter was rather fond of the expression "chuffed to the bollocks", bollocks being another of M-W's favourites. Warsaw Will Mar MirrorImage Apr I'm an antiquarian. I want my careful though defective, of course education to matter. Should my position have any legitimacy? I think it has always been a strong motivation for those who resist linguistic change; and sloppiness has always been a pressing reason for it.

Charles Russell May I want to know , which is the correct sentence to use when your laptop freeezes. Like , " My laptop hung up or my laptop hanged or my laptop is hung.

Maya Mar This explains it best. The man was hanged for stealing horses, but no one took him down and the body hung there for days. Papajewl May Do you have a question? Submit your question here. Yes No. All Rights Reserved. Posted by steve Filed in Expression 75 comments Share on Facebook. Share on Twitter. Email will not be published. Please enter your comment here. Comments Sort by Oldest Latest Rating. Tony1 Sep 47 votes Permalink Report Abuse. Acheron Sep 19 votes Permalink Report Abuse. So too with these two words.

Carol1 Apr 12 votes Permalink Report Abuse. Leslie2 Jun 16 votes Permalink Report Abuse. John4 May 9 votes Permalink Report Abuse. Of course, he wasn't nearly as inarticulate as our current commander-in-chief. The -ang verbs are pretty irregular already. Why have two forms when one will serve just fine? Asb Sep 5 votes Permalink Report Abuse. John4 Sep 6 votes Permalink Report Abuse. By the 14th century, the 2 verbs had collapsed into 1.

John4 Jul 4 votes Permalink Report Abuse. John4 Jul 2 votes Permalink Report Abuse. Dear Porsche Of course, i won the bet. Liz1 Mar 9 votes Permalink Report Abuse. Hanged may be correct but it sounds like an 's prospector, Dag nab it. Gary1 May 4 votes Permalink Report Abuse. Paul3 May 2 votes Permalink Report Abuse. Anyone have an answer? I order that the previous commentator be hanged for being crass. Napoleon complex, anyone? Avi, "I will be hanged" is correct as it is a future participle, but people, in their preference, tend to use "hung" as past tense and most people use "hung" because it doesn't come off as awkward as "hanged" when referring to past events.

Jon2 Mar 2 votes Permalink Report Abuse. Objects cannot undergo death by hanging, so are alway hung and not hanged. So, "He was hanged" means he is now dead, but "He was hung" leaves the question open.

I thnk I can answer two of your questions Mary. Plz, look below and correct if you feel any mistake Rick1 Aug 4 votes Permalink Report Abuse. Hung may not be "incorrect" as a substitute for hanged , but it is certainly ambiguous. T90 Sep 3 votes Permalink Report Abuse. Sorry about that. What to Know The past tense of hang, in almost all situations is hung. More Words At Play.

Merriam-Webster's Words of the Week - Oct. Time Traveler. Love words? Need even more definitions? Ask the Editors 'Everyday' vs. What Is 'Semantic Bleaching'? How 'literally' can mean "figuratively".

Literally How to use a word that literally drives some pe Is Singular 'They' a Better Choice? The awkward case of 'his or her'. Where do you suppose he gets this stuff from? This is a pet peeve of mine. Languages are by nature, fluid and subject to evolution.

Ive never seen hanged used by anyone other than journalists and novelists. I am certain it is editorial pressure that keeps it alive, and really for no other reason than to assert their relevance.

Hey Jeffrey, Get it right when expressing your righteous indignation! Skip to content. Search Search. Hanged or Hung December 4, This entry was posted in usage. Bookmark the permalink. Follow any comments here with the RSS feed for this post.

August 18, at pm. Karl says:. August 25, at am. September 9, at pm. January 1, at pm.