Notifications
Clear all
March 19, 2011 12:49 am
When did we start to use ding as a verb meaning penalize? Where does it come from?
I can imagine it comes from game shows, or car dents, or someplace else, but it seemed like a unique usage that isn't clearly documented in many references.
e.g.
Boy, Joe really got dinged for coming in late yesterday.
Don't ding me for something my brother said.
The cops have been dinging people a lot around here for failing to wear their seat belts.
1 Reply
March 26, 2011 11:47 pm
Glenn, I know the following is a stretch, but it might be a place to look.
To hit someone really hard can be to ring one's bell or chimes. Since a little bell dings, could a little (figurative) hit be a ding?
Emmett