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Anonymous Posted 14 years ago
Grammar

Heading / headed

I have just read on the BBC news website this headline:

[His nationality] activist [Mr. X], whose stay at the US embassy caused a diplomatic crisis, leaves [name of country]

on a plane heading for the US.

Would "headed" also be "good" English. Which do you prefer and why?

Thank you.
  

Top answer

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  • It would be easier if you simply supplied the full sentence without all the bracketing.
  • I see no potential confidentialities revealed.
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4 Answers
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It would be easier if you simply supplied the full sentence without all the bracketing. I see no potential confidentialities revealed.
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It would be good English but not good writing. "Headed" just means he's going in that direction. "Heading" implies a deliberate action on his part. "Headed" seem to me to be about the plane, too, which is not what was meant.
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Thank you, Mr. Micawber, for your reply.

Thank you, Enoon, for pointing out that "heading" may be referring to Mr. X. I had just assumed that it referred to the airplane!
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Congratulations, Enoon:

You were spot on (as our British friends say).

I have just seen this headline on the website of my local American newspaper:

Blind [nationality] dissident heading to United States
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