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I checked on the Internet, it's all out there, sometimes it is "That hurt" and sometimes it's "That hurts", so which one is correct?

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A fantastic example from the world of cinema: Rutger Hauer as replicant Roy Batty in Bladerunner .. "That hurts." – Joe Blow Jun 24 '11 at 13:04

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up vote 4 down vote

Both are correct. The difference is in the tense you are using. Hurt is past simple of... well, to hurt

That hurt. What did hurt you?

That hurts. What does hurt you?

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up vote 15 down vote

"That hurts" is the present tense, and "That hurt" the past, so in theory there's a clear difference. In practice, of course, anything that hurts now (eg a slap in the face) did hurt when it happened; and if it happened recently enough for "That hurt" to be relevant it's probably still hurting. But it is better to decide which you meant, and then use the correct form: clear language goes with clear thought.

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@Cerberus: It's "If you overedit again I'll scream", not ...again, I'll scream". – TimLymington Jun 24 '11 at 14:30
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Fine, I won't touch it again... I misread it the first time, which is why I added the comma (the main clause comes rather late, and "if it happened recently enough" could be read as a complete clause at first glance). – Cerberus Jun 24 '11 at 14:47

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