Revised as of
6 July 2023
I can’t help it. If someone is going to write about a person coming out of the hanger, I get these weird mental images: he’s dazed and confused as he emerges from a giant amusement park ride shaped like a gigantic hanger or maybe it’s a hangman and he’s escaped the noose by walking out of the character’s mouth or . . . well, you get the idea.
Shifting my mental imagery away from the story, shifting any reader’s focus, is just not a good plan. After all the work you’ve done to craft your story, don’t let a heterographic word confusion to throw your reader.
As in stationary, consider the two as in hangar. No matter what happens, you will be walking (that a) whether it’s in or out of the hangar.
Word Confusions . . .
. . . started as my way of dealing with a professional frustration with properly spelled words that were out of context in manuscripts I was editing as well as books I was reviewing. It evolved into a sharing of information with y’all. I’m hoping you’ll share with us words that have been a bête noire for you from either end.
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| Hangar | Hanger |
|---|---|
Airstrip and Hangar is by Michael Dibb and under the CC BY-SA 2.0 license, via Wikimedia Commons. |
Plastic Hangers by stevepb is in the public domain, via Pixnio. |
| Part of Grammar: | |
| Noun Verb, transitive Plural for the noun: hangars Third person present verb: hangars |
Noun
Plural: hangers |
| Noun: Large building with extensive floor area, typically for housing aircraft Verb, transitive: |
[In combination] A person who hangs something
Shaped piece of wood, plastic, or metal with a hook at the top, from which clothes may be hung in order to keep them in shape and free of creases Something from which another thing hangs, such as a hook [Historical] A short sword that hangs from a belt [British] A wood on the side of a steep hill |
| Examples: | |
| Noun: We keep the jets in the hangar. Jerry just came out of Hangar 17. The limo coasted to the hangar. The plane taxied to the hangar. Verb, transitive: Paul’s hangaring his plane until he can repair it. She spent a fortune hangaring her plane. |
Call in a wallpaper hanger.
What happened to all the coat hangers? I need to pick up some of those heavy duty wooden hangers. Why do hangers seem to multiply overnight? The jay appears in some of the large falls, or hangers, in Airedale. The naked part of the hanger is now covered with thistles (Wright, 53). |
| History of the Word: | |
| Late 17th century in the sense of shelter from the French and probably from Germanic bases meaning hamlet and enclosure. | Old English hangra is from hangian meaning hang. |
C’mon, get it out of your system, bitch, whine, moan . . . which words are your pet peeves? Also, please note that I try to be as accurate as I can, but mistakes happen or I miss something. Email me if you find errors, so I can fix them . . . and we’ll all benefit!
Satisfy your curiosity about other Word Confusions on its homepage or more generally explore the index of self-editing posts. You may also want to explore Book Layout & Formatting Ideas, Formatting Tips, Grammar Explanations, Linguistics, Publishing Tips, the Properly Punctuated, Writing Ideas and Resources, and Working Your Website.
Resources for Hangar versus Hanger
Apple Dictionary.com
Dictionary.com: hangar
Wright, Joseph. Editor. The English Dialect Dictionary, Being the Complete Vocabulary of All Dialect . . .. Oxford: H. Frowde, 1900. Print.
Pinterest Photo Credits:
MAWA 04430 by MAWA GmbH is under the CC BY-SA 2.0 de license and Fairchild JK-1Outside Fairchild Airplanes Hangar” by an unknown author and is in the public domain. Both are via Wikimedia Commons.
I can just see it.. the HANGER RIDE. I spent so much time researching airplanes that HANGAR and hanger are not my confusion…but I could see how it would happen . I am sharing this one, will make it to post office on Wednesday .
No worries.