"Hanged" vs "Hung"

[HornungTheHelpful]

I've noticed recently that it appears to be increasingly common to refer to a person as having been "hung" rather than "hanged". I find it really jarring. OED Online confirms that "hung" is not the past tense of "hang" where it refers to the punishment of hanging.

Presumably at some point the OED will embrace it so I may as well get used to it now. But AIBU to ask if anyone else finds it a jarring form of speech? (please take as read all of the necessary caveats about how it's a nice problem to have, if it bothers me I should just ignore it, why am I such a snob about language, I've started a sentence with a conjunction so can I really criticise etc, etc).

You are absolutely correct, but I still voted YABU for the simple reason that language is not static. There is a constant flood of new words into the English language, and the way we use "old" words evolves too. It's only natural that common usage will eventually prevail over what was once considered correct. Otherwise, we'd all still be talking like the Wife of Bath.

Thank you for that little homily 🤣

I am sorry for your loss, but if you find it upsetting don’t read it. It is clear from my OP what the thread is about (which is correct use of language). People are allowed to talk about things that upset you - you can choose to engage and be upset or not engage. You can’t dictate what they discuss.

Completely agree, @HornungTheHelpful. I'm glad you found a way to express the unreasonableness of that post so courteously, as I found it quite a troubling overreach.

😄😄😄

I also agree.

As do I.

Pretty sure it's dived. Checking now.....apparently can use both but 'dived' is UK and 'dove' US.

I think it came up a lot on the Yorkshire Ripper thread.

Joining you on that hill.
Adding 'Hens lay, people lie' to my hill as well.

Lay misused for lie is the one that annoys me most of all, even more than "should of" for "should have", probably because I hardly ever hear, let alone read, the correct version!

Time was "lay" misused was a real class marker here in Australia.

Not a new thing - for as long as I can remember people have always said ‘hung’ when strictly speaking it should be ‘hanged’.

The ad for Waitrose says ‘The phone rung’! 😱
One simply doesn’t expect it from Waitrose, does one?

Hung means to be suspended....an object can be hung (pictures,washing etc).

Hanged means to die by hanging.

Hung, drawn and quartered means they suspended someone but made sure they were not dead before they carried out the rest of the punishment.

There's an interesting discussion further back in the thread about the uncertainty of the usage and meanings regarding that punishment.

The local Waitrose has a sign periodically displayed that says “we politely ask you to refrain children from standing in the trolleys”. I complain every time. It is beyond illiterate.

When even Waitrose is at it, and don’t care, no wonder the country’s standards of literacy are going to the 🐶🐶.

I don't agree - the drawing was to be drawn on a hurdle (and later a sled) rather than just transported in a (more comfortable) tumbril. There were instances where criminals were drawn to execution but then not hanged. For example women accused of petty treason (murdering their husbands or for coining usually) were drawn and then burned - this is mentioned in Blackstone's commentaries "to be drawn to the gallows, and there to be burned alive", was equally awful to being hanged drawn and quartered. Subsequently the disembowelment of men was dropped in favour of hanging until dead and then removing the head but they were still sentenced to be hanged drawn and beheaded. Later when they started to execute people by their prisons rather than in execution places like Tyburn there were a number of cases where people had to be ritually drawn on sleds around the prison yard first.

Do you really read about hanging that often? What are you reading???

I am hoping it is history books!

My pleasure 😂

It is in fact my job to impose pedantry on language. So I know where you're coming from. In my free time, I am much more liberal!

Me too - but I keep going in my free time 🤣