Friday 2 November 2007

Hanging participles

Hate hate hate them. They are foul... and sometimes hilarious.

Any good ones you’d like to share?

Slap! (No, not you, hanging participles.)

Update (4.11.07): For those of you who aren't quite sure what a hanging participle is, here's a nice one:
Even in her high heels, he was taller than she was.

5 comments:

  1. I prefer the term "dangling participles." Because it sounds vaguely dirty.

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  2. "After being thoroughly whipped, the cook fried the eggs."

    No slapping necessary since there's already plenty of whipping going on.

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  3. You're right, K, it does sound 'vaguely dirty'. LOL! I like 'hanging' because they make me feel murderous.

    LOL! Thank you, H! I love it.

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  4. I love that in British English it's "hanging participles"- because after marking 60 student papers full of them I rather want to tell them all to go hang themselves like their participles. Here in the States, we call them "dangling" participles. Which is equally grotesque, though not quite as macabre.

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  5. I definitely think it's a hanging offence. Dangling is too cute a word for it.

    Sixty student papers! *shivers*

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