English is full of tricky choices: Is it “peak” or “peek”? (“Peek” is a quick look and “peak” is the top of a mountain.) Should you use “compliment” or “complement” when giving someone praise? (Compliment.) When it comes to “hanged” vs. “hung,” though, there’s only one very specific usage for the former. Both are acceptable past-tense versions of the verb “to hang,” but they are not interchangeable. The word “hanged” is grammatically correct in only one context: when referring to an execution by hanging. For example, “In the Old West, outlaws were hanged at high noon.”
In all other contexts, “hung” is the correct choice. Think of this line in the classic tale “The Night Before Christmas”: “The stockings were hung by the chimney with care.”
So, where did the difference in usage come from? The word “hang” comes from the Old English hangian, meaning “to be suspended,” but also the word hon, meaning “to suspend something.” One of those verbs was active (hon), while the other was passive (hangian). Today, both “hung” and “hanged” can function in the active and passive voice, but the two Old English root words led to “hang” developing two past participles: “hung” and “hanged.”
By the 16th century, “hanged” became the standard legal term for executions, giving it a singular function, while “hung” was used in all other contexts. Legal language is slow to change, so the word “hanged” endured to maintain clarity in judicial and historical writing.
Another thing to keep in mind is the phrase “hung up.” It evolved from the physical act of hanging an object — such as a coat or phone receiver — to gradually take on metaphorical meanings. Today, it can describe emotional fixation (“He’s still hung up on his ex”) or hesitation (“She got hung up on a tricky question”). But the phrase “hanged up” is never correct.
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