This has troubled and traumatised me for years...

[hotcrossMonkeybun]

...when I was a student, so many years ago I could cry, a tutor corrected my essay. I had written 'bored of...' and he crossed it out in big red pen and put 'bored with...'

I am convinced 'bored of...' is acceptable usage and now still obsess about it. Who is right?

[Freckle]

Well, I've always used bored with, but have never considered whether it was the only correct phrase or not. Not sure I'd say bored of.

[SenoraPostrophe]

"bored of" is definitely something a lot of people say.

I have a feeling that it's one of those rules that exists (for some people) in written English, but that the majority ignore, or don't even know about, like the split infinitive rule.

can't check though as I don't have an old-fshioned english usage book. must get one...

[hotcrossMonkeybun]

I was thinking along the lines of:

tired of (being here)

hmm, suddenly can't think of any more; perhaps he was right...

[Coolmama]

either bored with or bored by, but not bored of.

[hotcrossMonkeybun]

tired with being here - maybe, but clumsy?
tired by being here - ditto
tired of - elegant, if incorrect (as per many split infinitives...)?

[hotcrossMonkeybun]

and why? explanation please...

[Caz10]

oh i'd like to know the answer to this!

could you not be (eg) "bored of this terrible weather"?

[JaneHH]

This was one of the rules we had to learn at school along with the difference between "owing to" and "due to" (which I can't remember for the life of me anymore...). "Bored of" is colloquial, "bored with" / "bored by" is for written English.

As to why.... sorry no idea!

[Coolmama]

the usage of "bored of" is becoming more popular but is not inherently correct. One school of thought is that "tired of" is used and "bored" and "tired" could be interchangeable (they have similar connotations) therefore "bored of" should be acceptable. But it still makes me flinch when I hear it.

[wheresthehamster]

Are bored and tired interchangeable though?

E.g. I tire of this weather = correct; I bore of this weather = incorrect.

Wait to be corrected....

[Coolmama]

no, they are not actually interchangeable, however the perception that they are is what makes "bore of" colloquially acceptable.

[Coolmama]

sorry, "bored of" not "bore of"

[Samantha28]

I have never heard " bored of". Is it a regional variation?

[ghosty]

It was drummed into me by my parents:

Bored with
Fed up with

If I said of I was given bread and water for dinner for a week. I am not exaggerating. Well maybe a bit ....

Same with when to say "Joe and me" and "Joe and I" ... got grounded for a week if I got those wrong ...

[hotcrossMonkeybun]

No-one is explaining WHY though... Tired of is correct usage, no? So how is that OK when bored of isn't...

Tired of London, tired of life...

Bored of London, bored of life...?

I am suitably wrist-slapped about it's accuracy, but I'd still like to understand the origins of the distinction if possible.

I do have a usage book somewhere, I guess if I'm to Be An Official Pedant, I probably need to read it.

[hotcrossMonkeybun]

Oh God. I can't believe I just posted it's on a pedants thread.

[JaneHH]

hotcrossMonkeybun what a relief you saw that stray "it's" as quickly as you did...



Have just thought of a plausible, passable but pisspoor reason why it's "tired of" but "bored with". Wait for it...

You can "tire of something" (active, of sorts, actually intransitive? but I have a feeling that's a whole new thread) but you can't "bore of something". So perhaps this distinction has made its way into the "I am bored/tired of/with" form...?

TAH-DAHHH do I win some kind of prize now?

[JaneHH]

oh shoot I've just seen that wheresthehamster had the same brainwave as me, only about 3 weeks ago.

[SugarSkyHigh]

nO WAy can you say Bored Of.
Highly wrong!
Likewise, fed up of, is also WRONG!!

[claricebeansmum]

JaneHH - sorry to be particularly pedantic but you do know that 3 should have been written in word form - "three" - don't you?

[JaneHH]

just checking people were reading my posts

[hotcrossMonkeybun]

yes Sugar. I know (yawn) now. But I'm now needing to know why.

Plausible, Jane. Well, it would be if I knew what intransitive meant.

[SugarSkyHigh]

you will never know why!
there is no reasoning when it comes to the English language...
it's the most irrational language there is

[JaneHH]

Intransitive verbs are ones without a direct object, like "I go". Even if you say "I go to the shops" that's intransitive because there's no direct object. Verbs like "eat" are transitive because you can "eat something".



oh yessss I'm safe until I press POST mwah ha ha

So I was dithering about whether a verb like "tire of" is transitive or intransitive, because you tire OF something, not tire something. Well, you can tire people / animals / small children but then it's definitely transitive! ENTIRELY irrelevant to the discussion but hey. And COMPLETELY badly explained, I fear...

[moomooface]

I am a newbie to Mumsnet today and was whooping with joy when I discovered the pedants' corner. It is so nice to know that I am not alone . It is most definitely 'bored with' and, other than a few exceptions (tired of... you just know that's correct in most contexts), all of these sorts of expressions should be ending in 'with' or 'have', as appropriate (e.g. should have or should've but definitely not should of). The big problem for me is that my other half is not in the least bit pedantic about the spoken or written language, so I really have my work cut out in trying to instill such (wholly necessary) pedantry in my son. Wish me luck!