So Sorry to Hear That You Were Impacted!

So Sorry to Hear That You Were Impacted! So Sorry to Hear That You Were Impacted! So Sorry to Hear That You Were Impacted! By Maeve Maddox Reader Ron Harper, Jr. wonders about the use of the word impacted: I used a word today and immediately questioned my use and the history of word over the last decade or so.   The word was â€Å"impacted.†Ã‚   As in That incident really impacted me.  Ã‚   Is that a correct usage historically?   It seems that its not correct as soon as I said it although I hear people use it that way!   (but how many talking heads use irregardless?!) The use of the past participle impacted to mean â€Å"had an impact on† is fairly recent. The original sense of impact (v.) is â€Å"to press closely into something, It’s from Latin impactus, pp of impingere, â€Å"to push into.† The word Impinge comes from the same source. The form impacted has until recently been used to describe something that is closely wedged together. Teeth, for example, can be impacted. A bone that has been crushed can have impacted fragments. Other things not nice to mention can be impacted. Coleridge used impact in 1817 as a noun to mean â€Å"the effect of coming into contact with a thing or a person. Ex: That had an impact on him. Nowadays the noun impact is also seen in the plural in the context of various occupations: impacts A measure of viewing to advertisements. One impact is equivalent to one viewer watching one 30-second advertising spot. impacts Effects of pressures on the status of surface water and groundwater impacts The significant consequences of a government program activity, either intended or unintended, and either positive or negative. The earliest recorded use of the verb impact to mean â€Å"to strike forcefully against something† dates from 1916. If something can be said to impact something, then the participle use is sure to follow. Like so many shortcut words beloved by headline writers, impacted in place of â€Å"had an impact on† is here to stay: Has the Economy Impacted Your Earnings? How space exploration has impacted our health How Globalization Has Impacted Labor How football hooliganism has negatively impacted the sport Nevertheless, I find it disconcerting. When I hear someone say, â€Å"That really impacted me,† I have the mental image of a body all mashed in on itself. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Vocabulary category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:100 Words for Facial ExpressionsConnotations of 35 Words for Funny PeopleUsing "zeitgeist" Coherently