It’s the carrot at the end of the tunnel
Posted: October 5, 2016 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: carrot and stick approach, expressions, humor, language, light at the end of the tunnel, malaphor, malaphors, words 3 CommentsTwo guys were told that part of their pay would be made when their work was successfully delivered. They were told to consider it “the carrot at the end of the tunnel”. This is a nice mash up of “light at the end of the tunnel” (the end of a difficult period or job) and “carrot on a stick” (reward that is promised as an incentive to complete a task). This malaphor is probably caused by carrots and sticks having similar shapes. And maybe Bugs Bunny sitting in a tunnel pulling carrots underground? A big thanks to Bob Newstadt for hearing this one and passing it on. An additional shout out to his quick-witted friend Nax Paul Mendler for responding to the speaker with, “don’t you mean the light at the end of the stick?”
If you enjoyed this mixed idiom, you will love my book “He Smokes Like a Fish and other Malaphors”, now available on Amazon at http://www.amazon.com/dp/0692652205.
A wrench had been thrown into the bucket
Posted: October 4, 2016 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: expressions, humor, kick the bucket, language, malaphor, malaphors, throw a monkey wrench into the works, words Leave a commentIn the context of a plan that was derailed, a coworker said that “a wrench had been thrown into the bucket.” I think this is a mash up of “throw a monkey wrench into the works” (disrupt a plan) and “kick the bucket” (to die). I think the latter is in the mix because the speaker was discussing a plan that was essentially dead as a result of the derailment. Anyone have any other ideas? A big thanks to Tom Winkleman for hearing this one and passing it on!
Microsoft continues to cloudy the water
Posted: October 3, 2016 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: cloud the issue, expressions, humor, language, malaphor, malaphors, muddy the waters, words Leave a commentThe exact quote is “Microsoft continues to cloudy the water around their licensing schemes.” This was heard on a corporate training video discussing a technology where software use is either licensed via a traditional shrink-wrapped license or via a Service Provider Licensing Arrangement. It is a congruent conflation of “cloud the issue” and “muddy the waters”, both meaning to make something unclear. Certainly muddy water is cloudy, and hence the mix up. And as pointed out by the Magellan of Malaphors Mike Kovacs, who heard this beauty, readers should note the transmogrification of the word “cloud” to fit this malaphor. Score for Mike and extra points for using the word transmogrification in a sentence and for using the word correctly. This is like getting fouled on a three point shot that goes in and having the other team called for a technical.
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