You better watch your P’s and cross your T’s
Posted: May 18, 2015 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: congruent conflations, dot your i's and cross your t's, expressions, humor, language, malaphor, malaphors, mind your p's and q's, words Leave a commentExcellent advice given by that legal malaphor utterer, Marykathryn Kopec. She said this to her husband, warning him about submitting a Motion to a particularly picky Judge. It is a congruent conflation of “mind/watch your P’s and Q’s” and “dot your I’s and cross your T’s”, both meaning to pay careful attention to small details. This mash-up has a nice rhyming ring to it. Thanks to Marykathryn for this one!
It could happen at the drop of a pin
Posted: May 16, 2015 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: could hear a pin drop, drop of a hat, expressions, humor, language, malaphor, malaphors, words Leave a commentThis malaphor was heard on the local Pittsburgh PBS show, “On Essential Pittsburgh”. It is a mash up of “at the drop of a hat” (immediately) and “(so quiet that) you could hear a pin drop” (extremely quiet). Drop is the shared word and the probably cause of the confusion. Kudos to Sally Adler for hearing this one and sending it in!
This clearly tops the cake
Posted: May 9, 2015 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: expressions, humor, language, malaphor, malaphors, over the top, takes the cake, words Leave a commentThis beauty was spotted by Mike Browning in a local news channel website. The Virginia Delegate Mark Keam was discussing predatory towing and uttered this malaphor. It is a mash up of “it takes the cake” (extreme example, usually bad) and “over the top” (extremely overdone). A cake topping also comes to mind. Here is the link to the quote: http://www.wjla.com/articles/2015/04/predatory-towing-in-the-dmv-gone-in-60-seconds-113447.html. Thanks Mike for this one!
I was dead to the wind
Posted: May 6, 2015 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: dead to the world, expressions, gone with the wind, humor, language, malaphor, malaphors, mixed idioms, words Leave a commentSteve Grieme, a frequent contributor to this blog, heard this one from his very exhausted wife after a late night dinner and early wake-up. It is a mash up of “dead to the world” (sound asleep) and “gone with the wind (disappeared or gone forever). Both expressions indicate a completeness. Isn’t dead to the wind a nautical term? A big thanks as always to Steve for keeping his ear to the grindstone for malaphors!
I’m not one to wave the drum for feminism too often
Posted: May 4, 2015 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: beat the drum, expressions, humor, language, malaphor, malaphors, mixed idioms, wave the flag, words Leave a commentIn the course of discussing workplace politics, the speaker uttered this gem. It is a perfect congruent conflation of “wave the flag” and “beat the drum”, both meaning to promote or support someone or something. Question for the day: if a drum is waved, will anyone hear it? A tip of the hat to Laura for sending this one in!
I worked my butt to the bone
Posted: May 1, 2015 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: expressions, humor, Judge Judy, language, malaphor, malaphors, mixed idioms, words, worked my butt off, worked my fingers to the bone 2 CommentsI’ve heard “bad to the bone”, but “butt to the bone”? This hilarious, alliterative malaphor was uttered on a radio commercial promo for an upcoming Judge Judy show. It is a congruent conflation of “worked my butt off” and “worked my fingers to the bone”, both meaning to work extremely hard. Perhaps this should now be an expression used by workout trainers. A big thank you to Steve Grieme who heard this one and passed it on!
That money was pissed out the window
Posted: April 24, 2015 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: congruent conflations, expressions, humor, language, malaphor, malaphors, out the window, pissed away, words Leave a commentThis is a congruent conflation of “pissed away” and “thrown out the window”, both meaning something wasted or gone. The context was some friends discussing wasted money. A big thanks to Andy Wakshul for hearing this one and sending it in. As he said, “You wouldn’t want to walk past that window when they were spending money.” True dat.
This provided me with a real springstone to learn this new position
Posted: April 19, 2015 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Bruce Springsteen, expressions, humor, language, malaphor, malaphors, springboard, stepping stone, words Leave a commentThis gem was heard by the (un)Civil Professor of Malaphors, Martin Pietrucha. This is a congruent conflation of “springboard” and “stepping stone”, both describing something that launches a career or activity. The word “springstone” reminded Martin of an old 80s EP record, Bruce Springstone: Live at Bedrock, which has a couple of songs on it done by the fictional Bruce Springstone who mashes up Springsteen and the Flintstones. Great listening if you have never heard it:
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I can’t keep my eyes awake
Posted: April 16, 2015 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: expressions, humor, keep your eyes open, language, malaphor, malaphors, peeled, stay awake, words 2 CommentsThe Mistress of Malaphors, Naomi David, strikes again with this gem uttered in a sleep deprived state. This is a combo of “keep one’s eyes open” (watchful and observant) and “wide awake” (fully alert) or “stay awake”. The picture below demonstrates the fine art of keeping one’s eyes awake. Keep ’em coming, Naomi! Thanks to Katie Hatfield for sending this one in!
I can’t put all my chickens in one basket
Posted: April 11, 2015 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: chicken, chicken basket, don't count your chickens before they hatch, eggs in one basket, expressions, humor, language, malaphor, malaphors, mixed idioms, words 2 CommentsWhich came first: the chicken or the egg? Seems like a difficult question given the amount of malaphors posted on this site involving barnyard animals and their offspring ( e.g., all your eggs lined up, too many eggs spoil the soup, and don’t count your chickens before they come home to roost, to name just a few). This beauty is a mash up of “don’t put all your eggs in one basket” (don’t make everything dependent on one thing) and “don’t count your chickens before they hatch” (don’t expect something before it happens). The speaker may have also been hungry and thinking of a chicken basket. Yum. Chicken in a basket used to be a pub favorite in England. Thanks to Jody Compton for hearing this one uttered by the wonderful actress Lara Hayhurst Compton!
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