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Anonymous Posted 18 years ago
Grammar

Seated or sat?

I work in a restaurant. When letting a server know that he or she has a new customer, I'll say something to the effect of, "Hey Joe, I seated table 40," or "Table 40 has been seated."

My co-workers constantly argue that it should be 'sat,' not 'seated' in both cases. I just don't see how this could be correct.

Can anyone let me know which is correct, and why?

Thank you!
  

Top answer

" "Sat" is not a transitive verb. I am sitting here. I sat there yesterday.

— BarbaraPA

  • " "Sat" is not a transitive verb.
  • I am sitting here.
  • I sat there yesterday.
  • The only person doing the "seating" in this case is me.
  • But in your context, "to seat" is the right word.
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10 Answers
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I am FAR more familiar with "have seated."

They are confusing the intranstive verb, "to sit" with the transitive verb "to seat."

"Sat" is not a transitive verb. I am sitting here. I sat there yesterday. The only person doing the "seating" in this case is me.

But in your context, "to seat" is the right word. You are providing a place for someone else to sit.

Thi
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Grammar GeekI am FAR more familiar with "have seated."

They are confusing the intranstive verb, "to sit" with the transitive verb "to seat."

"Sat" is not a transitive verb. I am sitting here. I sat there yesterday. The only person doing the "seating" in this case is me.

But in your context, "to seat" is the right word. You are providing a place
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I agree with GG and Philip. As GG said, "Stick to your guns".

Here is a link to the American Heritage Dictionary entry for the word seat, which will further back you up:
http://www.bartleby.com/61/60/S0196000.html
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I work in a restaurant, too. Server slang is horrendous. I have experience as an English teacher, I'm studying for my graduate degree in English lit, and I'm notorious for using proper English no matter where I am or what the context. I don't often correct my co-workers, who would probably just roll their eyes and continue speaking the same way, but I completely understand why you could become
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I had the exact same problem. I said "I seated some people at table 42" and my boss was like "you don't say I seated, you say I sat." Now I get to rub in her face and be like "hey, uh, so should be change that sign to 'please wait to be sat' or just leave it the 'incorrect' way. Thanks for this. I feel so correct now. :-D
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The advisability of rubbing anyone's boss's face in anything is questionable, but I do think the idea of temporarily (before the restaurant opens) taping a sign that says "Please wait to be sat" over your regular sign (or just "sat" over the word "seated") is hilarious.
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Your co-worker is wrong! Sat is the past simple and past participle of the verb "to sit", which implies an action that only the subject can do on itself, nobody else but the subject of the sentence. So, you sat a customer on table 40, for example, is totally wrong, as one only sits oneself! However, I seated the customer, as you said, is right, because you are using the verb "to seat" as a transti
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I'm in the same situation, and I have a manager that refuses to acknowledge a sentence that uses the word "seated," insisting that his GED knows better than my writing degree. It is "seated," not "sat," and I'm glad this forum seems to agree with me.
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What about this phrases: "I'm currently seated" and "I'm currently sat", which one is correct?

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