beyond / over and pale / pail

[David Barnhart]

I posted the following earlier today.  There's a follow-up down below



I agree with the explanation here for _over the pail_.  The reporter likely
is not a careful writer in all probability.  (So, what else is new?)



A pail is for carrying.

A pale is for separating.



                                   L/N                    Google (who knows
what that is.)



Beyond the pale (OED: 1720)        2638                   2,760,000* (when
enclosed in quotes)

Beyond the pail (OED: zero)         30                      88,500



Over the pail (OED: zero)          (zero)                   216,000

Over the pale (OED: zero)          1113                     112,000





Carrying on from the above numbers:



1.  Any of use of _pail_ for _pale_ is an error that from the numbers is not
worth considering for a standard dictionary-perhaps for a usage dictionary.

2.  _Over the pale_ is possibly worth noting. Is there any sense of dialect
operating here-regional or social?





Regards,

David



barnhart at highlands.com

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