Why do you shovel not spade?

[purplepoppy]

I thought and help dad out today by shovelling a pile of stones in his car. He's been meaning to get rid of them for ages but never gets round to it. I'm sure he'll be pleased when he gets home and sees I've done all the hard work.

But it got me thinking, why is when we use a shovel we're shovelling but when we use a spade we're not spading? We say "I shovelled a huge pile of manure" but we don't say "I've spaded the garden". As for having the cat spade I wish they were clearer on that before I started.

[Anonymous]

So it turns out this is all quite complicated.

Here is what is going on, from what i can gather:

A spade comes from a Greek root Spathe which is originally describing a broad bladed sword.

When you make a hole in the ground you are infact excavating, the person is an excavator and unless the ground is very soft you will need more than one tool, i. e. a pick axe to break up the ground. You can of course perform the act of 'axing' and it seems you can also 'spade' or have a jolly good spading session, but this sounds strange to our ear, we like to say dig.

Digging is of unknown origin but has a wider meaning beyond excavation, such as investigation, a private detective could not unreasonably be called a 'digger' though Im not sure anyone has done that.

One can 'shove' without a 'shovel' and a mole can 'dig' or 'excavate' the ground with its 'spade' like hands.

When we made a tool which could both 'axe' and 'spade' we called it an 'excavator', or 'digger'.

https://external-content.duckduckgo.com/iu/?u=https%3A%2F%2Ftse1.mm.bing.net%2Fth%3Fid%3DOIP.5-zCsL024CLQAD9qRMYuBQHaGE%26pid%3DApi&f=1

Here is a not at all confusing picture of an excavator shovelling.

[WindAtMyBack]

You can say spaded and spading if you want. There are no rules against it. People might look at you funny and wonder what the hell you are talking about, but so what?

Now hope that your dad doesn't blow out the tires or break the suspension in his car by driving it with all that weight in it. The pic might be deceiving, but that looks like too much weight even for a full size pick-up truck.

[SaoirseS]

LOL good question. Only once that I can remember have I ever heard someone use the word spade a verb - "I need to spade the garden." I guess rocks can get shoveled, but only gardens can be spaded.

[SaoirseS]

Thanks for MHO!

[Jessica405]

Good question! I dunno!

Like why chop a tree down, then chop it up for logs. In Kent, you could go up the Downs.

[Oigit]

Well if your dad was smart he would find a big open spot where he could do high speed donuts in his car with the trunk open. Just ensure there isn't anything breakable around and go for it. That should quickly get all of the rocks out of the car.

Sure driving up a hill stupidly fast with the trunk open would work too. But I don't think it would be as fun. That and it would be as cool as watching the rocks fly out of the trunk in a big circle.

[Gremlinimo]

You "dig" the garden with a spade. Spades are for digging.

You "shovel" with, well, a shovel... it's for moving material, rather than turning it over, hence the bigger size and turned up edges to stop stuff falling off.

Now please tell us if the car actually moved with 2 tons of stone in it, lol.

[Luopio27]

I swear you should get a youtube channel or something. Your adventures and daily stories are one of a kind.

[AviatorTom]

Another interesting @purplepoppy question.

The word spade is a noun while shovel is both a noun and a verb.

[exitseven]

I actually have used the term spaded the garden. I had my cats spayed too. Then I got my wife spayed too

[andreasderjuengere]

You're the daughter that all of us silently wish they had as well :)

As for YOUR Dad... I think that he won't be too surprised.

But with weekend closing in, I have a feeling that the family beach picnic will be called off.

[TCredo]

I am sure your Dad and your cat are happy with you :)

[Jamie05rhs]

Actually we DO say "spaded the garden.". At least here in the U. S.
You guys don't say that?

[Surely]

The stone handling device in your picture would be called a shovel in my book 📕

A spade would look more like a digging shovel to me.

[20yearsolder]

I apologize for not reading the two paragraphs but a spade is used to dig a hole for something like a post a shovel is used to dig a pit. A big hole

[call_me_scar]

Because the clay dirt is hard to break here in texas so shovels are more useful for that

[Red_Arrow]

Why does your cat have a spade? Or did you mean to say spayed?

[maximumpower]

Depends upon dialect - much as people can call a bucket a pail.

[hypojoe]

So there was 2 ton of rock in that vehicle how did it move or stop for that matter

[Anonymous]

I think your father is going to be pissed finding a lot of rocks in his vehicle.

I spayed the garden this morning. I think it's also depends on where you're living. Yes the English language plays on words.

[Staximus]

Wow he should have just borrowed or rented a truck

[Zolly99999]

Holy crap that's a lot of rocks in the vehicle 😳

[krin_m]

Because we call it "A shovel" and not spade.

[Anonymous]

The tires probably popped on that Ford explorer with all that weight. That poor cat though, lol

[Andres77]

Your poor dad 🙄

[goaded]

Because you're a miner, not a farmer?

[Mandnfb]

Wow that’s a piece of shit you got there

[jimmy2]

Lol yes you are right on