Don’t give in on “gifted”

3 comments October 23rd, 2008

I know this is another one of those things that’s bound to change, but I don’t have to like it: the use “gift” as a verb, as in “The company announced it had gifted the land to the community.”

Actually, this usage is a comeback of sorts rather than something new. Bryan A. Garner writes that “gift” has been a verb since the 16th century. But I still don’t like it.

There are two perfectly good alternatives for the above example: “given” and “donated.”

Furthermore, “gifted” is already useful as an adjective, meaning “talented” or “notably superior in intelligence.”

But as long as some people think “gifted” works well as a verb, they’ll keep using it. That’s a given.