Does anyone know why "tut" as a verb (i.e. tuts, tutted) is not on the Microsoft Word 2007 dictionary? Is it not a proper verb?
It's in every other dictionary. And if Shakespeare can have Richard lll say "Tut, tut, thou art all ice, thy kindness freezeth..." I don't see why we can't use it. It's old English rather than too colloquial, imo. Before anyone points out that it's being used as an exclamation here, not a verb, I know. But I'm not smartipants enough to think of an example off the top of my head where it's being used as a verb. It can be, though.
Tut is not a verb. It can be used as an interjection, though it has fallen out of use. For example, The American Heritage Dictionary does not include the interjection 'tut', though it does include such gems as 'huh' and 'ahem.' But unless you are referring to King Tut and it's a proper noun, the only correct usage for it is as an interjection.
No, 'with a tut' would be using it as a noun. 'Tut tut,' she said. would be interjection use, like 'Huh?' or 'Ahem.' As for usage as a verb, if Oxford allows it, I will stand corrected. To tut: I tut he/she tuts we tut they tut Sounds strange.
So how would you write this: Polly just tutted and shook her head. "What are we going to do with you?" she said to herself as she watched her son trudge up the garden path, head to toe in thick black mud.
Watching her mucky son trudge up the path, Polly tutted and shook her head, 'What are we going to do with you?'
Polly watched her son trudge up the garden path, covered from head to toe in black mud. She tutted and shook her head. 'What are we going to do with you,' she said to herself. Follow the action - reaction - dialogue OR event - emotion - dialogue sequence. Polly watched her son trudge up the garden path, covered from head to toe in black mud. ACTION She tutted and shook her head. REACTION 'What are we going to do with you,' she said to herself. DIALOGUE And keep the sentences uncluttered. The 'tutted' is fine.
I've just tried to look it up in my dictionary. hard copy. Tut is not there. tut-tut is there tut-tut (interj) an exclamation of impatience or mild disapproval. vi(tut-tutting, tut-tutted) to express disapproval or impatience by uttering "tut-tut"
Thanks for the advice on how to actually write that piece but that sentence was just something I threw together to include the word "tutted". That is the question I was asking - how would you write a sentence that indicated that a character tutted, because tutted is apparently not a word.
its in dictionary.com and my Penguin dictionary both describe it as a noun, interjection and verb. OED online describes it as exclamation, noun and verb, my grandad's 1949 massive dictionary agrees with the OED
Just look in a few more dictionaries and you'll soon find it. It's in online dictionaries (as a verb) also. So, your sentence is fine and you don't need to take it out.
the fact that it's a dictionary-recognized verb does not mean it's a good idea to use it as one... i'd laugh, might even tut-tut aloud and shake my head if i saw any of those suggested sentences using 'tut' or 'tutted' in a book/story i was reading...
