Well, if I am galloping down the road on my donkey and see a sign saying flooded/flooding I will definitely slow down to avoid getting my ass wet.
To actually answer the original question:
Since the odds are strongly in favour of the flooded road being the outcome of a natural event (e.g. rain has flooded the road) and not the result of a deliberate act (e.g. the engineers have flooded the road) my natural instinct on seeing this sign is to take it as an adjective describing a state, and not a past participle describing an intended result.
Harzer
FLOODED
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I agree. Whereas a note on the fridge reading:Harzer wrote:Well, if I am galloping down the road on my donkey and see a sign saying flooded/flooding I will definitely slow down to avoid getting my ass wet.
To actually answer the original question:
Since the odds are strongly in favour of the flooded road being the outcome of a natural event (e.g. rain has flooded the road) and not the result of a deliberate act (e.g. the engineers have flooded the road) my natural instinct on seeing this sign is to take it as an adjective describing a state, and not a past participle describing an intended result.
Harzer
DO NOT ENTER BATHROOM
FLOODED
UNCLE JOHN NOT PLUMBER HE PROMISED
might lead on to the past participle conclusion.
And if we change the danger?
Hey all.
Been a while since I've driven in a country where one is expected to read words on warning signs (one of the reasons the Spanish Authorities insisted on my taking the written driver's test all over again, since "No Left Turn" in the USA is a round piece of sheet metal with a red boarder, a left arrow in black with a red slash mark in Spain). But if my memory serves me, a sign saying "Falling Rocks" would be the standard usage to warn that there is the possibility that the driver would encounter rocks on the road due to the possibility that rocks would fall, while "Fallen Rocks" is more or a sureity, that is "There are rocks on the road that the Department of Highways hasn't gotten around to picking up." Soooo,
"Flooding" would mean that from time to time the road is subaquatic while "Flooded" means that you better slow down right now because you are going to splash a pedestrian. That's what I think, anyway!
peace,
revel.
Been a while since I've driven in a country where one is expected to read words on warning signs (one of the reasons the Spanish Authorities insisted on my taking the written driver's test all over again, since "No Left Turn" in the USA is a round piece of sheet metal with a red boarder, a left arrow in black with a red slash mark in Spain). But if my memory serves me, a sign saying "Falling Rocks" would be the standard usage to warn that there is the possibility that the driver would encounter rocks on the road due to the possibility that rocks would fall, while "Fallen Rocks" is more or a sureity, that is "There are rocks on the road that the Department of Highways hasn't gotten around to picking up." Soooo,
"Flooding" would mean that from time to time the road is subaquatic while "Flooded" means that you better slow down right now because you are going to splash a pedestrian. That's what I think, anyway!
peace,
revel.
Hi Metal!
Well, I'm not so sure even then that I would take the past pasrticiple route, since the plumber blundered.
You would have to have a situation like there was a snake visiting the bathroom from time to time and the only way to de-snake it was to flood it, before I would go "hey a past participle!".
harzer
Well, I'm not so sure even then that I would take the past pasrticiple route, since the plumber blundered.
You would have to have a situation like there was a snake visiting the bathroom from time to time and the only way to de-snake it was to flood it, before I would go "hey a past participle!".
harzer
So, not for you:Harzer wrote:Hi Metal!
Well, I'm not so sure even then that I would take the past pasrticiple route, since the plumber blundered.
You would have to have a situation like there was a snake visiting the bathroom from time to time and the only way to de-snake it was to flood it, before I would go "hey a past participle!".
harzer
Attention! The crap plumber YOU hired has flooded the bathroom.
??