It was a case of the tail biting the dog
Posted: September 18, 2012 Filed under: ACTION, ANIMALS, BODY PARTS | Tags: bark worse than his bite, blended idioms, dog, expressionis, malaphors, mixed idioms, tail wagging the dog, wag, words 2 CommentsI think this is a mash up of “tail wagging the dog” (a situation where a small part is controlling the whole of something) and “his bark is worse than his bite” (person seems more hostile than he really is). The latter includes the visual of a dog biting and hence the confusion. I say think because there are other possible explanations for the mix up. My “ol pal” thinks the phrase “man bites dog” (aphorism in journalism which describes how an unusual, infrequent event is more likely to be reported as news than an ordinary, everyday occurrence) is involved since it evokes a visual of both parties biting. There is also the phrase “don’t bite the hand that feeds you” (don’t treat someone badly who is helping you). I guess this is an unsolved “case”. Any other suggestions?
She got off on a sour foot
Posted: September 17, 2012 Filed under: ACTION, BODY PARTS | Tags: blended idioms, expressions, malaphors, mixed idioms, sour note, words, wrong foot Leave a commentThis is a blend of “strike a sour note” (signify something unpleasant) and “off on the wrong foot” (starting something, like friendship, with negative factors, both indicating something unpleasant or, as my “ol pal” says, leaves someone with a bad taste in his/her mouth. Perhaps the speaker was referring to “the shoe pinches” malaphor posted a few days ago. My guess is if a shoe pinches it will result in a sour foot.
He said it off the top of his cuff
Posted: September 16, 2012 Filed under: BODY PARTS, CLOTHING, THINGS | Tags: blended idioms, expressions, malaphors, mixed idioms, off the cuff, off the top of his head, words Leave a commentThis is one from “the master”, and it shows. Subtle and brilliant, it is a mash up of two similar meaning idioms – “off the cuff” (speaking spontaneously without rehearsal) and “off the top of his head” (saying something without thinking about it first). Combining these two idioms into one shows “the master’s” continued economical use of the English language.
The project is going to pot in a handbasket
Posted: September 15, 2012 Filed under: ACTION, THINGS | Tags: blended idioms, expressions, handbasket, hell in a handbasket, malaphors, mixed idioms, pot, words 1 CommentThis is a mash up of two similar meaning idioms – “going to pot” (declining or getting worse) and “going to hell in a handbasket” (a situation quickly headed to disaster). My guess is that the speaker did not want to say the word “hell” and so “pot” came to mind. Moreover, my notes indicate this phrase was spoken in the 70s, so it is possible that the speaker indeed had “pot” on his mind….
Let’s do it and listen to how the shoe pinches
Posted: September 14, 2012 Filed under: ACTION, CLOTHING, THINGS | Tags: blended idioms, expressions, malaphors, mixed idioms, pinches, shoe, words 2 CommentsThis one is a little far-fetched for my taste, but it needs to be posted nonetheless. This is a mix up of “if the shoe fits” (an unflattering remark that is true so should be accepted) and probably “feel the pinch” (having less money), although the speaker may have just been thinking about ill-fitted shoes that pinch the toes and feet. Any other suggestions on this one would be appreciated.
Now we’ve got to flush out the skeleton
Posted: September 12, 2012 Filed under: ACTION, BODY PARTS | Tags: blended idioms, expressions, flesh out p, flush out, malaphors, mixed idioms, words 5 CommentsHeard at a meeting 25 years ago, it still plays well today. Actually, this is a fairly common malaphor, as flush is often used for flesh and vice versa. This is a mix-up of “flesh something out” (make something bigger or more detailed) and “flush something out” (to make something more obvious or force something out of hiding).
The white elephant in the room
Posted: September 6, 2012 Filed under: ANIMALS, COLORS, PLACES | Tags: blended idioms, elephant, elephant in the room, expressions, malaphors, mixed idioms, white elephant, words 2 CommentsThis little ditty was spoken at a meeting last week all the way from Afghanistan. It is a mash up of “elephant in the room” (obvious truth that is either being ignored or going unaddressed) and “white elephant” (a burdensome possession whose costs outweigh its value). The crackerjack research team at Malaphors HQ (my “ol’ pal”) tells me there are few, if any, elephants in Afghanistan, much less white elephants. Tip of the toque to Jim Washabaugh, loyal malaphor follower, for sending me this gem.
He threw a cold shoulder on the idea
Posted: September 5, 2012 Filed under: ACTION, BODY PARTS | Tags: blended idioms, cold shoulder, cold water, expressioins, malaphors, mixed idioms, snub 1 CommentClassic mix-up of “threw cold water on” (negative about something) and “turn a cold shoulder” (snub someone). Both expressions indicate negativity; “cold water” is negativity toward something and “cold shoulder” negativity toward someone. In this case, perhaps the speaker not only disliked the idea but the person expressing the idea as well?
They were raking him over the ropes
Posted: September 4, 2012 Filed under: ACTION, THINGS | Tags: blended idioms, expressions, malaphors, mixed idioms, raking over the coals, ropes, words Leave a commentThis is a mash up of “raking over the coals” (reprimand severely) and “on the ropes” (about to or likely to fail). While both phrases have different meanings, they both describe a bad situation for someone. Also coals and ropes are four letter words and both have the same vowel sounds (assonance) which could have led to the confusion.
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