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  1. #1
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    Default "got bit by" and "got bitten by"

    "got bit by" and "got bitten by", are they both right?

    thanks in advance!

  2. #2
    Daruma is offline Senior Member
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    Default Re: "got bit by" and "got bitten by"

    Only "got bitten by" is correct.

  3. #3
    eng1 is offline Newbie
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    Default Re: "got bit by" and "got bitten by"


  4. #4
    bhaisahab's Avatar
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    Default Re: "got bit by" and "got bitten by"

    Quote Originally Posted by Unregistered View Post
    "got bit by" and "got bitten by", are they both right?

    thanks in advance!
    Only 'got bitten' is correct. 'Got' is replacing 'have been' and takes the past participle 'bitten'.

  5. #5
    grm
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    Default Re: "got bit by" and "got bitten by"

    bite - Definition from the Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary
    Inflected Form(s):
    bit \ˈbit\ ; bit·ten \ˈbi-tən\ also bit; bit·ing
    Getting Down and Dirty in an Underground River in Puerto Rico - New York Times
    I just got bit by a scorpion.

  6. #6
    Raymott's Avatar
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    Default Re: "got bit by" and "got bitten by"

    Quote Originally Posted by grm View Post
    bite - Definition from the Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary
    Inflected Form(s):
    bit \ˈbit\ ; bit·ten \ˈbi-tən\ also bit; bit·ing
    Getting Down and Dirty in an Underground River in Puerto Rico - New York Times
    I just got bit by a scorpion.
    Rossano Boscarino from Puerto Rico says "I just got bit by a scorpion", and you think it worth posting here?
    As Merriam-Webster indicates, the form is bite/bit/bitten (present/past/past participle).
    "got bit" is wrong, and I don't care how big Rossano is. In any case, he'd just been bitten by a scorpion, so his English probably wasn't his priority.
    Last edited by Raymott; 05-Jul-2009 at 03:55. Reason: Correct typo

  7. #7
    grm
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    Default Re: "got bit by" and "got bitten by"

    Quote Originally Posted by Raymott View Post
    As Merriam-Webster indicates, the form is bit/bit/bitten (present/past/past participle)
    Does bit mean bite in present tense? Does Merriam-Webster really indicate that?

    Is Google Books a bit more academic?
    http://books.google.com.au/books?as_...isbn=&as_issn=
    Last edited by grm; 05-Jul-2009 at 01:49.

  8. #8
    Raymott's Avatar
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    Default Re: "got bit by" and "got bitten by"

    Quote Originally Posted by grm View Post
    Does bit mean bite in present tense? Does Merriam-Webster really indicate that?

    Is Google Books a bit more academic?
    Sorry, that was a typo. I meant bite/bit/bitten. (I've corrected it).

    You can post as many examples of bad English, or regional or archaic English as you can find, but that doesn't change what is correct in standard English. Sometimes there are legitimate differences in standard English such as British "got" and American "gotten". But "I got bit" is not correct in standard English. And that's what we try to teach here, for the benefit of those who want to, or have to, learn it.

    Some of the books listed are novels with obviously incorrect English:
    en he got bit by a spider er sump'n, en his foot is swoll' up so he can't
    walk. En he ax' me fer ter fin' you en fetch you down dere ter he'p 'im home

    Some of the books are lists of what has been used by some people, and there is no doubt that some people, like our bitten friend Rossano, have said "I got bit".

    Also, this thread will be added to Google, and there will be yet one more example of "I got bit" on the records. But it doesn't matter how many instances of the same error there are, you can't use them to prove it right.
    Last edited by Raymott; 05-Jul-2009 at 03:56.

  9. #9
    grm
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    Default Re: "got bit by" and "got bitten by"

    Quote Originally Posted by Raymott View Post
    Sorry, that was a typo. I meant bite/bit/bitten. (I've corrected it).
    In that case, maybe you should ask Webster's to correct their definition:
    Main Entry:bite
    Pronunciation:\ˈbīt\
    Function:
    verb
    Inflected Form(s):
    bit \ˈbit\ ; bit·ten \ˈbi-tən\ also bit; bit·ing \ˈbī-tiŋ\

    By the way, when you say "And that's what we try to teach here, for the benefit of those who want to, or have to, learn it."

    Since I am new here, I wonder if what you said represents this forum?
    Last edited by grm; 05-Jul-2009 at 04:20.

  10. #10
    Raymott's Avatar
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    Default Re: "got bit by" and "got bitten by"

    Quote Originally Posted by grm View Post
    In that case, maybe you should ask Webster's to correct their definition:
    Main Entry:bite
    Pronunciation:\ˈbīt\
    Function:
    verb
    Inflected Form(s):
    bit \ˈbit\ ; bit·ten \ˈbi-tən\ also bit; bit·ing \ˈbī-tiŋ\
    OK, I see your point. Websters accepts 'bit' as a past participle.
    The only explanation I can give is that since Websters is an American dictionary, and dictionaries tend to be descriptive, not prescriptive, enough Americans must use it wrongly that they've decided to list it.
    'Bit' as a past participle doesn't occur in the British and Australian dictionaries I have access to.

    Perhaps what we need is some American forum members to comment on this. If one or two say that they use 'bit', I'll upgrade it in my personal grammar to "arguably Standard, but best avoided in good company"

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