Use of the word "hung"

Question

Is there ever a time when the word "hung" may be used instead of "hanged".  I am particulalry interested in its context as related to executions.Thanks.

Dimsumexpress · Accepted Answer

This is a common confusion even among natives. This link may help clear some of the confusion.

http://www.englishrules.com/writing/2005/hanged-or-hung.php

Pictures can be hung, but people are always hanged. It's an odd quirk of the English language. Here is a usage note on the word "hang" from the American Heritage Dictionary:

Hanged, as a past tense and a past participle of hang, is used in the sense of "to put to death by hanging," as in Frontier courts hanged many a prisoner after a summary trial. A majority of the Usage Panel objects to hung used in this sense. In all other senses of the word, hung is the preferred form as past tense and past participle, as in I hung my child's picture above my desk.

Philip · Answer

On TV's "Hollywood Squares", Paul Lynde's famous definition of 'hung jury' was: all men. He got away with so much!

Dimsumexpress · Answer

Paul Lynde was a bad boy !

But at that time, this kind of humor was not taken as offenisve and P.C.

Use of the word "hung"

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