Revised as of
4 Jan 2023
Throne and thrown are a pair of heterographs, but they are distinct enough that it shouldn’t be difficult to keep track of which is which. Don’t forget . . . spellcheck doesn’t read context. It simply tells you if the word is spelt correctly or not.
Spellcheck doesn’t care if your character was throne from the thrown. Of course, being thrown from the throne has a great many more connotations. Depending upon context . . . of course.
You may also want to explore “Threw versus Through” and/or “Throe versus Throw“.
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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| Throne | Thrown |
|---|---|
Throne of Charles III of Spain, 1770s, is courtesy of 12019 / 12019 images under the CC0 license, via Pixabay. |
Cubs Lefty Jon Lester Throws a Bullpen “s” by apardavila under the CC BY 2.0 license, via BaseKnock MLB. — Lester had already thrown the ball. |
| Part of Grammar: | |
| Noun; Verb, intransitive & transitive Plural for the noun: thrones Third person present verb: thrones |
Morpheme: throw
Noun 1; Verb 1, intransitive & transitive, 2 Plural for the noun: throws Third person present verb: throws |
| Noun: A ceremonial chair for a sovereign, bishop, or similar figure, usually raised on a dais and covered with a canopy
Mourners’ bench The occupant of a throne
Verb, intransitive: Verb, transitive: |
Noun: As thrown does not have a noun form, I’m not including the noun definition or examples. Verb, intransitive: Verb, transitive:
Send (one’s opponent) to the ground in wrestling, judo, or similar activity
Form (ceramic ware) on a potter’s wheel
Have a fit or tantrum Give or hold a party [Of an animal] Give birth to young, especially of a specified kind Propel (something) with force through the air by a movement of the arm and hand 2
|
| Examples: | |
| Noun: The throne is a symbol of the bishop’s teaching authority in the Catholic Church, the Orthodox Church, and the Anglican Communion churches. Prince Charles is the heir to the throne. You’ll have five minutes to address your pleas to the throne. He’s been on that throne for an hour! The Thrones or Elders are a class of celestial beings who are living symbols of God’s justice and authority. He came to the throne by succession. Queen Elizabeth is the throne. A Game of Thrones is the first book in George R.R. Martin’s series, Song of Fire and Ice. Verb, intransitive: Verb, transitive: “True image of the Father, whether throned / In the bosom of bliss, and light of light” (Milton). |
Verb, intransitive: He had thrown too late. Paul had thrown hard, but missed. She had thrown up. Verb, transitive: The pilot and one passenger were thrown clear and survived. The door was thrown open and a uniformed guard entered the room. The stewards had thrown a cordon across the fairway. She had thrown her head back and laughed. The scene was easy to see, as the chandelier had thrown its bright light over the walls. Did you see the punch he had thrown? She had thrown a withering glance at him. Jamie had thrown his voice, making it seem as if the stuffed bear was talking. I had thrown on my housecoat and gone to the door. Paul had thrown the switch, and the house blew up. He had thrown a main. The racing officials found out he had thrown the race. Warhorse has thrown a shoe. Michael had thrown all her emotions into turmoil. The bond market was thrown into confusion. These guys should be thrown in jail. She frowned, thrown by this apparent change of tack. He won the match after he had thrown his opponent. Blackie had thrown Susan yet again. Jenny has thrown pots for years. Mary has thrown hissy fits since she was a child. The Kranks had thrown a noisy party last night. Sometimes a completely black calf is thrown. |
| Derivatives: | |
| Adjective: throneless Verb: enthrone |
Adjective: throwable, unthrown, well-thrown Noun: throwing |
| Phrasal Verb | |
| thrown money around thrown oneself at thrown oneself into thrown oneself on thrown oneself upon thrown people together thrown someone out thrown someone over thrown something away thrown something in thrown something off thrown something open thrown something out thrown something up thrown up |
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| History of the Word: | |
| Middle English from the Old French trone, which is via the Latin from the Greek thronos meaning elevated seat. |
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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 Throne versus Thrown
Apple Dictionary.com
Dictionary.com: throne, thrown
Milton, John. “The First Book.” Paradise Regain’d. 2012. Originally published 1671. <https://amzn.to/3rC8roz>.
Twain, Mark. The Adventures of Tom Sawyer. SeaWolf Press, 2020. EBook. <https://amzn.to/3CG0cOn>.
Pinterest Photo Credits:
Accessible Shower by CDC/ Richard Duncan, MRP, Sr. Proj. Mngr, North Carolina State University, The Center for Universal Design (CUD) acquired from Public Health Image Library is in the public domain, via Free Stock Photos Biz. Toilet is Schlamniel’s own work and is in the public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
