It’s always been “after the horse has bolted” for me. I’ve never heard “after the horse has been stolen” or “after the horse has gotten out.”
Locking the barn door after the horse has been stolen seems most familiar to me (I grew up near Atlanta, if that means anything). Random fact: in Korea people say mending the fences after losing the cow.
This is obviously a regional thing. I’ve only ever heard “…after the horse has bolted” and I doubt that anyone else in this part of the world has ever used the “stolen” version.
It’s “the horse has bolted” for me as well. I’ve never heard the other variantions.
Ditto silverfish. I’m also UK.
I thought it was “Shutting the barn door after the horse has already _____ed in 16 counties”
But maybe I’ve been reading too many SDMB threads.
Bolted is the version I’m used to.
That’s the way I say it, sometimes replacing “gone” with “out.”
My regionalisms tend to be somewhat amalgamated, but solidly East Coast: my folks are from north Jersey, I grew up mostly in the Baltimore area (except for a couple of years in England), I went to college near Philly, and I’ve been in Virginia since '98.
[QUOTE=Celyn]
Oh, all right, the only one I am familiar with is “after the horse has bolted”
QUOTE]
Another vote for this one too. I have not heard this used in any other way.
Damn.
Preview is my friend. :smack:
After the horse is gone. Why it’s gone is not specified. I’ve heard it with barn door more often than stable door.
Another Brit [del]n[/del]weighing in with …after the horse has bolted. ÑÏ
“Bolted” too. This thread is the first I’ve heard of any other phrasing.
“closing the barn door after the horses have left the barn”
- I’ve only ever heard the ‘bolted’ version.
Another British vote for “…the horse has bolted”.
I always thought it was wordplay - the fastening commonly being used to close a stable door being a bolt.
“Shutting the barn door after the horse’s gone.”
I used the apostrophe S because when it’s spoken it’s hard to tell whether the speaker is saying “is” or “has” – and either one would work. If I were writing it I’d use “is”.
Only ever ‘bolted’, though I can’t really recall anyone using it except for my parents, who are British emigrants.