Pedants' Paradise

[french frank]

The sign 'This door is alarmed' invariably brought a smile to my face.

The offending sentence in my case was "The car was alarmed'. Even now it's not a usage I would follow.

Just thought to look up in the OED. First example (of five) was - the New York Magazine in 1968, followed in 1969 by the first British example, in a novel by Victor Canning. The most recent, 2007 in The Independent, was: "I noticed a sign stating ‘This door is alarmed’", which suggests - possibly? - the usage was still odd to British(?) ears.

[Serial_Apologist]

That may be the problem, but it might also be down to a lack of filtering before saying or writing something - or laziness if that's what I should call it.

I also find myself getting increasingly irritated by people on phone-ins not pre-preparing what it is they are going to say, thereby hogging the conversation of potentially more constructive contributions. This tendency has noticeably grown since the concept of the radio/TV phone-in was first introduced, at which time contributers seemed less inclined to showcase their stupidity. The dictatorship of the ignorant.

[Serial_Apologist]

Depending on my mood I either think "oh, poor thing" or "what's it got to be alarmed about"

It might have had identity issues and thought it was a jar.

[oddoneout]

It might have had identity issues and thought it was a jar.

Excellent, thank you for the laugh. I will have many occasions - alas - to be reminded of that witticism.

[french frank]

that witticism.

In the form "When is a door not a door?" ?

[Bryn]

In the form "When is a door not a door?" ?

Adorable.

[Pulcinella]

From North Yorkshire Community Messaging

City centre knife crime operation haled a success

We're all hale and hearty up here, obviously.

[gurnemanz]

From North Yorkshire Community Messaging

City centre knife crime operation haled a success

We're all hale and hearty up here, obviously.

I was surprised that the above "haled" wasn't underlined in red by my browser as a spelling mistake, since I did not think there was a verb "to hale". I checked SOED and found there is indeed such a verb. Entry duly pasted below in case any fellow pedants are interested:

hale heɪl ♫ verb1. ME.
1 verb trans. Draw, pull; spec. drag, tug, or haul forcibly. ME.
R. Ellmann He was haled before the Vice-Chancellor's court in November 1877.

2 verb trans. fig. Draw forcibly to, into, out of, a course of action, feeling, condition, etc. (Foll. by to, into, out of.) lME.
J. H. Friswell Garrick haled on one hand by Tragedy and on the other by Comedy.

3 verb intrans. Pull, tug. lME.

4 verb intrans.
a† Move along as if drawn or pulled; hasten, rush; spec. (of a ship) proceed before the wind with the sails set. lME–e18.
b Flow, run, pour. obsolete exc. Scot. & N. English. lME.
ORIGIN: Old French & mod. French haler from Old Norse hala = Old Saxon halon, Old High German halōn, holōn (Dutch halen, German holen fetch): cf. Old English ġeholian acquire & haul verb.

hale heɪl ♫ verb2. obsolete exc. Scot. ME.
Make hale or whole; heal.
ORIGIN: from hale adjective, or var. of heal verb1 assim. to hale adjective.

[french frank]

I knew there was a verb 'to hale' but had to look up the exact meaning, so perhaps 'They haled a success from the jaws of failure'? To haul seems just to be a variant spelling, same meaning. But neither is to be confused with 'to hail'.

More accurately: "City centre knife crime operation haled successfully from the jaws of failure." But either 'operation' or 'success' has to be a direct object of the verb, and in both cases some additional phrase is required.

I was surprised that the above "haled" wasn't underlined in red by my browser as a spelling mistake, since I did not think there was a verb "to hale". I checked SOED and found there is indeed such a verb. Entry duly pasted below in case any fellow pedants are interested:

hale heɪl ♫ verb1. ME.
1 verb trans. Draw, pull; spec. drag, tug, or haul forcibly. ME.
R. Ellmann He was haled before the Vice-Chancellor's court in November 1877.

2 verb trans. fig. Draw forcibly to, into, out of, a course of action, feeling, condition, etc. (Foll. by to, into, out of.) lME.
J. H. Friswell Garrick haled on one hand by Tragedy and on the other by Comedy.

3 verb intrans. Pull, tug. lME.

4 verb intrans.
a† Move along as if drawn or pulled; hasten, rush; spec. (of a ship) proceed before the wind with the sails set. lME–e18.
b Flow, run, pour. obsolete exc. Scot. & N. English. lME.
ORIGIN: Old French & mod. French haler from Old Norse hala = Old Saxon halon, Old High German halōn, holōn (Dutch halen, German holen fetch): cf. Old English ġeholian acquire & haul verb.

hale heɪl ♫ verb2. obsolete exc. Scot. ME.
Make hale or whole; heal.
ORIGIN: from hale adjective, or var. of heal verb1 assim. to hale adjective.

[gurnemanz]

I knew there was a verb 'to hale' but had to look up the exact meaning, so perhaps 'They haled a success from the jaws of failure'? To haul seems just to be a variant spelling, same meaning. But neither is to be confused with 'to hail'.

More accurately: "City centre knife crime operation haled successfully from the jaws of failure." But either 'operation' or 'success' has to be a direct object of the verb, and in both cases some additional phrase is required.

A cunning explanation but in the sentence quoted it is, as you suggest, just being confused with "hailed" (= welcomed)

[french frank]

A cunning explanation but in the sentence quoted it is, as you suggest, just being confused with "hailed" (= welcomed)

Yes, I was just being pedantic :-)

[Padraig]

Yes, I was just being pedantic :-)

The wittiest pedants hail from the South West

[Serial_Apologist]

The wittiest pedants hail from the South West

But the strongest hail's from cumulonimbus clouds.

[french frank]

But the strongest hail's from cumulonimbus clouds.

More punditry than pedantry

[Padraig]

More punditry than pedantry

That is nearly poetry.