They are high on our radar
Posted: March 11, 2020 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: expressions, high on the list, humor, language, malaphor, on the radar, under the radar, words Leave a commentA national hockey writer was talking about the Pittsburgh Penguins’ chances of winning the Stanley Cup this year, and he mentioned that the Pens are always “high on our radar”. This is a congruent conflation of “on the radar” and “high on the list” (something important or noteworthy). “Under the radar” (undetected) is an idiom and may have contributed to the mashup (under vs. high). A big thanks to John Kooser for hearing this one and sending it in.
He’s teetering a fragile line
Posted: March 8, 2020 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: expressions, humor, language, malaphor, teetering on the edge, Trump, walking a fine line, words Leave a commentGinger Gibson, Reuters Political Correspondent on the NPR show A1, was talking about Trump’s recent actions relative to the Roger Stone sentencing. This is a mashup of “teetering on the edge” (to be very close to a dangerous situation) and “walking a fine line” (in a dangerous situation where you could easily make a mistake). Both idioms involve dangerous situations, and “line” and “edge” are closely related. Not sure where “fragile” fits in, but “fine” has a similar meaning to “fragile”, to wit – fine means “having or requiring an intricate delicacy of touch” as in ‘delicate’, ‘fragile’, ‘frail’,” etc .” Here’s where you can hear a recording: at 7:25. https://the1a.org/segments/the-news-roundup-domestic-2020-014-02/
By the way, this is Ms. Gibson’s second malaphor. See https://malaphors.com/2018/05/18/the-buck-stops-at-the-top/.
A tip of the hat to David Barnes for hearing this one.
Right out of the bat
Posted: March 5, 2020 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Cal Perry, humor, language, malaphor, off the bat, out of the gate Leave a comment
He’s tooting that horn all the way to the bank
Posted: March 2, 2020 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Biden, expressions, humor, language, laughing all the way to the bank, malaphor, tooting one's own horn, Trump, words Leave a commentThis one comes from the Washington Post’s Daily 202 Connie Breeden, an attorney who is African American, said “This is going to be Biden’s last stand because he thinks that black people are going to support him just because of Barack Obama. He’s tooting that horn all the way to the bank. But people are savvier than that.” This is a mashup of “tooting his own horn” (to boast or brag about one’s abilities) and “laughing all the way to the bank” (to profit from something that others regard as stupid or frivolous). Here’s the link to the malaphor
Perhaps the speaker was thinking of thieves dressed as clowns robbing a bank. That is certainly in several movies, including Quick Change. A big thank you to Barry Eigen for spotting this one and sending it in.
You were out like a log
Posted: February 24, 2020 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: expressions, humor, malaphor, malaphors, out like a light, slept like a log, words Leave a commentWhile I posted this one way back in 2012, it bears repeating as I think it is one of the purest congruent conflations out there, and a common one as well. The speaker was talking about her lack of sleep the previous night but that her husband slept soundly, describing him as being out like a log. This is a congruent conflation of “slept like a log” and “out like a light”, both referring to sound sleep. There are a lot of the letter L in both expressions, contributing to the mix up. A big thanks to Donna Calvert for sending this one in. Glad to hear Bill is sleeping well in retirement.
He has his hands in a lot of pies
Posted: February 22, 2020 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: a finger in every pie, expressions, hand in something, humor, language, malaphor, words Leave a commentThe contributor of this malaphor was also the speaker, and blurted out this beauty by accident. It is almost a congruent conflation, as both “a hand in something” and “a finger in every pie” mean to have an interest in or involvement in a matter, but in the case of finger in every pie, it is involvment in everything. “Fingers” and “hands” seem to be the culprit here, and I suspect, knowing the speaker, that his mind might have been on some pie-fighting scenes in a few 3 Stooges shorts. A shout out to Martin Pietrucha for sending this one in!
All of the enchiladas were placed on the table
Posted: February 10, 2020 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: expressions, humor, malaphor, Michael Steele, MSNBC, put your cards on the table, the whole enchilada, words Leave a commentDiscussing the unfairness of the Iowa Caucuses, former RNC Chairman, Michael Steele on MSNBC uttered this malaphor. It is a mashup of “the whole enchilada” (everything) and “lay (one’s) cards on the table” (to be very candid about one’s position). My guess is that the speaker was hungry. A big thanks to Ron MacDonald for hearing this one and sending it in.
Congratulations Coach Reid! You finally got the hump off of your back
Posted: February 7, 2020 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Andy Reid, Brian Dawkins, expressions, humor, Kansas City Chiefs, malaphor, malaphors, monky off your back, over the hump, words, Young Frankenstein 2 CommentsThis malaphor was tweeted by former NFL player Brian Dawkins (safety for the Philadelphia Eagles):
@BrianDawkins
CONGRATULATIONS COACH REID!! You finally got the hump off of your back. You have been a blessing to so many of us as a Coach yes, but also as a man. You’ve learned & given so much to so many… You Earned it!! LOVE YOU!!! #BigRed #SuperBowlChampion
I have a job underneath the books
Posted: February 4, 2020 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: expressions, humor, language, malaphor, malaphors, off the books, under the table, words Leave a commentThis was heard at an administrative hearing. The speaker was talking about work that he was currently performing. It is a congruent conflation of “off the books” and “under the table”, both meaning to do something in secret so that taxes won’t be paid. Then again, maybe the speaker works in the basement of a library. A follow up question hopefully was made. A big thanks to John Costello for hearing this one.
If you liked this one, check out my book on malaphors, “He Smokes Like a Fish and other Malaphors”, available underneath on Amazon. https://www.amazon.com/dp/0692652205
Malaphors 
Recent Comments