Topic: Usage - bare, bared, bore?

[Zeitgeist]

The past tense of bare is bared, right? Not bore?

The priestess let slip the raiment from her shoulders and bared her breasts to the light of the moon.

Sounds off to me, I want to say bore, but I don't think that is right. Thanks

[Lord Mayerling]

That is the correct usage of bared, the past tense of bare.

[Zeitgeist]

That is the correct usage of bared, the past tense of bare.

Yeah, I'm seeing that now, the more I dig. I guess I'll just have to live with it sounding funny to my ears. After all, it is correct, lol.

[Star Safyre]

To say she bore her breasts would mean her boobs find her dull or that she drilled holes in them.  If she got naked, she bared them.   

/Englishteacher

[Zeitgeist]

To say she bore her breasts would mean her boobs find her dull or that she drilled holes in them.  If she got naked, she bared them.   

/Englishteacher

LOL I know. I got it right teach

I must be thinking of another unrelated usage...bearing a burden. His whole life he bore the burden of tragic accident.

Please tell me you have a paddle, teach

[Star Safyre]

Corporal punishment isn't my style.  I'm all about the positive reinforcement. 

Yes, you were thinking of carrying a burden.  So if she had very heavy breasts that found her dull so she drilled holes in them, she would have bore them in all senses of the word.   *chuckle*

[Zeitgeist]

Corporal punishment isn't my style.  I'm all about the positive reinforcement. 

Yes, you were thinking of carrying a burden.  So if she had very heavy breasts that found her dull so she drilled holes in them, she would have bore them in all senses of the word.   *chuckle*

Oh, well they aren't quite that big and are in fact quite lovely I assure you. There will be no boring, or need of bores. Bared it is

[Beguile's Mistress]

Could you say:  "...she lay bare her breasts..." as an alternative?

[Zeitgeist]

Could you say:  "...she lay bare her breasts..." as an alternative?

Oh, I like that.

The priestess let slip the raiment from her shoulders and lay bare her breasts before the light of the moon.

Gods that's exciting. LOL

[Beguile's Mistress]

I think it's a little more lyrical.

[Zeitgeist]

This is wholly self serving of me, but would a sticky thread devoted to questions of grammar be in order? I know for myself, I like to bounce off these short questions of usage and grammar, and it would seem to make sense to me to have a devoted thread, rather than post a new one for each question? I'd post it in Literary Discussion, but that board doesn't seem to get the same number of eyes, you know?

[Oniya]

Bore is also the past tense of to bear (as in to carry).  If she had been endowed with a G-cup, you might indeed say she 'bore' her breasts - with an air of long suffering.

[Zeitgeist]

Bore is also the past tense of to bear (as in to carry).  If she had been endowed with a G-cup, you might indeed say she 'bore' her breasts - with an air of long suffering.

Hmm. That would afford more real estate for the cuniform scripts painted upon her breasts; odes and prayers to Nanna. But I'm getting ahead of myself.

Thank you all.

[Caeli]

This is wholly self serving of me, but would a sticky thread devoted to questions of grammar be in order? I know for myself, I like to bounce off these short questions of usage and grammar, and it would seem to make sense to me to have a devoted thread, rather than post a new one for each question? I'd post it in Literary Discussion, but that board doesn't seem to get the same number of eyes, you know?

I think that questions get more attention if they're posted in single threads (new ones for each new question) rather than in a thread devoted to the subject. Plus, as its own topic, you can specify your question in the title itself, so that members who have no interest in the question will not be bothered to check and see if they can help, while those who can help can see that at a glance.

Stickies should be things that people should read, and/or for important issues, and at this point, I think the Help forum has more than enough.

[Haibane]

Oh, I like that.

The priestess let slip the raiment from her shoulders and lay bare her breasts before the light of the moon.

Gods that's exciting. LOL

It's also a different tense. If you're writing in the past tense, simple or perfect then "she bared" is more correct. "She lay bare..." would be one of the forms of present tense (simple, I think) and would technically be incorrect.

The incorrect mixing of tenses is a thing that bothers me more than mis-spellings.

[Caeli]

I think using "laid bare" would correct the tense issue, if I'm not mistaken.

[Avis habilis]

I think you're right. She might lay her bare breasts on something - why she would do that is left as an exercise for the reader - but if she's exposing herself she would have "laid bare".

[Vandren]

I think using "laid bare" would correct the tense issue, if I'm not mistaken.

Yep.  That is correct.

/English prof currently teaching remedial grammar this term  (grrrr)

[Beguile's Mistress]

Thank you all for the grammar nudges. 

I hadn't looked at that side of it and was only offering a more elegant way of saying what needed to be said as I prefer elegance any day of the week. 

[Zeitgeist]

Ah! See I just took Beguile's Mistress word for it, by reputation alone

So we have:

The priestess let slip the raiment from her shoulders and laid bare her breasts before the light of the moon.

And, I just wanted to say it again

[Beguile's Mistress]

I do like it, too.  It's more in the nature of an offering than an aggressive showing.

[jouzinka]

Do you insist on bare in whatever form, Zam?

[Zeitgeist]

Do you insist on bare in whatever form, Zam?

Well one might assume her raiment fell to gather at her feet, but no, I imagined they caught around her curvaceous hips

[Malina]

Maybe she also bore her breasts in the sense of enduring/carrying/supporting them (-> bear, bore, borne) ?

[jouzinka]

Well one might assume her raiment fell to gather at her feet, but no, I imagined they caught around her curvaceous hips

No, not my trail of thought at all, I was just thinking that "bare" was such a harsh word.

The priestess let slip the raiment from her shoulders and unveiled her bosom (personal preference) to the silver light of the moon.

In that case and as a matter of personal preference, I'd probably re-work the "to the silver light of the moon" part as well to "under the soft silvery moonlight" or something to that effect.