We were cocked and loaded to retaliate
Posted: July 10, 2019 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: expressions, half-cocked, humor, locked and loaded, malaphor, Trump, words Leave a commentThis beauty comes from a Trump tweet. Concerning a possible military strike against Iran, Trump tweeted, “We were cocked & loaded to retaliate last night on 3 different sights when I asked, how many will die.” This is a mashup of “locked and loaded” (a command to prepare for battle) and “to go off half-cocked” (to take a premature or ill-considered action). Many news sites picked up on the malaphor, including Reuters, calling it a malaprop. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-trump-malaprop/trumps-half-cocked-and-loaded-tweet-draws-barrage-of-reaction-idUSKCN1TM2I0
We of course know it is not a malaprop (improper use of a word) but rather a malaphor (unintentional blend of two or more idioms). A few loyal followers, including Ron MacDonald and Frank King, spotted this one. Thanks Ron and Frank!
You need to pull the cord
Posted: June 18, 2019 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: cut the cord, expressions, humor, malaphor, malaphors, pull the plug, words 2 CommentsI unintentionally blurted this one out to someone who was thinking of getting rid of his cable service. It is a mash up of “pull the plug” (to force something to end) and “cut the cord” (discontinue cable service). Both expressions involve discontinuing something, hence the mix up. This one also comes free with a public service message: always pull the plug, not the cord! Now do you see how useful and helpful this website is?
Joe Biden needs to get out and shake the flesh
Posted: June 17, 2019 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: expressions, humor, Joe Biden, Joe Crowley, language, malaphor, MSNBC, press the flesh, shake hands, Trump, words Leave a commentThis one conjures up a scary/humorous image. Former House Rep Joe Crowley (D-NY) (who was unseated by AOC) said this beaut on MSNBC today. He was asked if he had any advice for the Biden campaign and this was his answer. It is a congruent conflation of “press the flesh” and “shake hands and kiss babies”, both meaning to go out and meet as many people as possible. Mike Kovacs, Chief Operating Officer for Malaphor Central, heard this one and sent it in immediately. Mike noted that there are several cheap jokes embedded in this malaphor. Crowley lost to AOC, who as many will remember shook the flesh in a great dance video. Also, Mike queried whether Biden at his age could shake the flesh considering the loss of elasticity, but I believe that actually works to Joe’s advantage.
Word of the week: malaphor
Posted: June 12, 2019 Filed under: Uncategorized Leave a comment
A few weeks ago Susie Dent, in her Origin of Words slot on the Channel 4 show “Countdown”, featured the word “malaphor”. It’s a cross between a malapropism and a metaphor, or series of metaphors. Malapropism is a word that I have been aware of since the age of 12 and, unlike zeugma or synecdoche, has always come to mind when needed. I have known, for decades now, that it’s named after the character Mrs Malaprop from Sheridan’s play “The Rivals” (even though I have never seen it), but I needed this definition from the Oxford dictionaries website to confirm that the play was written in 1775. A malapropism is described in that definition as the “mistaken use of a word in place of a similar-sounding one, often with an amusing effect (e.g. ‘dance a flamingo’ instead of flamenco)”.
Malaphors do a similar thing, with metaphors instead of…
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Baseball trades are like flipping the dice
Posted: June 10, 2019 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: 93.7 the Fan, congruent conflation, expressions, flipping a coin, malaphor, malaphors, Pirates, rolling the dice, words Leave a commentThis is a perfect malaphor, compliments from the sports world. Jack Zduriencik uttered this one on the Pittsburgh Pirates pre-game show on 93.7 The Fan. It is a congruent conflation of “flipping a coin” and “rolling the dice”, both meaning to rely on chance or purely at random. Coins and dice are both used in games of chance, such as craps. Of course if you flip the dice in a craps game, chances are you’ll be ejected. A big thanks to John Kooser for hearing this gem.
Pelosi has all these Chairs on a tight rope
Posted: June 8, 2019 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Daily Kos, expressions, humor, malaphor, malaphors, Nancy Pelosi, on a tight leash, walking a tightrope, words Leave a commentThis one was found on the website The Daily Kos. The writer was discussing how Nancy Pelosi controls the various House Subcommittees. This is a nice blend of “walking a tightrope” (to do something with extreme care and precision) and “on a tight leash” (under someone’s strict control). Both phrases have the word “tight” in them and “ropes” and “leashes” are similar items. Also, both phrases entail exactness and control. Here is the link to the malaphor: https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2019/6/5/1862845/-NY-Offers-Chairman-Neal-Trump-s-Tax-Returns-Neal-Says-No-Thanks-Unbelievable
A tip of the hat to Barry Eigen who spotted this hidden creature in the word forest.
I was double-stabbed
Posted: June 5, 2019 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: double-crossed, expressions, humor, idioms, malaphor, stabbed in the back, words Leave a commentThe speaker was talking about someone at work who had requested something and then was later penalized for the exact thing. It is a nice congruent conflation of “stabbed in the back” and “double-crossed”, both meaning to be betrayed. A big thanks to Jamie for sharing this one, and who immediately recognized it was a malaphor! Glad you shared it immediately, Jamie, as they quickly recede from the memory banks for some reason.
I was surprised he fell south so fast
Posted: May 31, 2019 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: 93.7 the Fan, expressions, fall apart, go south, humor, malaphors, Ron Cook, words Leave a commentAnother from sports talk radio. A sports columnist, Ron Cook, was commenting on Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Joe Musgrove’s recent poor outings and did not expect them after his excellent start of the season. It is a congruent conflation of “fall apart” and “go south”, both meaning to depreciate or drop in value. If you fall south then does that mean you rise north? A big thanks to John Kooser who heard this one and passed it on.
That’s why I think the President was so steamed off this morning
Posted: May 28, 2019 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: expressions, humor, language, malaphors, Nancy Pelosi, pissed off, steamed, Trump, words Leave a commentThis beauty was uttered by Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, referring to Trump’s reaction to her comments about him engaging in a cover-up. Here is the context:
“This is why I think the president was so steamed off this morning, because the fact is in plain sight, in the public domain, this president is obstructing justice and he’s engaged in a cover-up, and that could be an impeachable offense,” the San Francisco Democrat said at a progressive conference.
This is a nice congruent conflation of “pissed off” and “steamed (up)”, both meaning to be angry. My guess is that Speaker Pelosi was thinking “pissed” but quickly realized that would not be a prudent thing to say in public. Just guessing. I will note for the record that “steamed off” is a phrase, but it normally means to leave or depart in an angry or animated manner. A big tip of the hat to Mike Kovacs for hearing this one!
We’re firing on all wheels now!
Posted: May 26, 2019 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: expressions, firing on all cylinders, humor, malaphors, put the wheels in motion, words Leave a commentThis was uttered by a server at a restaurant after everyone ordered their food. It is a mashup of “firing on all cylinders” (to operate at the greatest possible speed or efficiency”) and I think “put the wheels in motion” (get something started) given the context. Wheels and cylinders are parts of a car, and probably that contributed to the mental mixup. A big thanks to Steve Grieme who heard this one and sent it in.
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