Last week on the show Deadline: White House, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer was talking about Trump and his reckless behavior. He then uttered this nice congruent conflation of “shooting from the hip” and “flying by the seat of (one’s) pants”, both meaning to act or speak impulsively without planning in advance. Can’t help but think “shitting (one’s) pants” (to be extremely frightened) might also have been on the speaker’s mind. Kudos to Steve Messinger for hearing this one and sending it in!
Heard on April 6. A CNN correspondent was talking about a government lawyer’s legal argument in one of the many cases against the Trump administration. The correspondent opined that “he’s standing on shaky ice”. This is a congruent conflation of “on thin ice” and “on shaky ground”, both meaning to be in a precarious or risky position. This one is similar to a recent post – https://malaphors.com/2025/01/31/on-the-edge-of-very-thin-ice/ . Perhaps the speaker was thinking of a nice cocktail in the future.
Cheers to Tom Justice for hearing this one in his car and immediately sending it in!
A few people were watching the trailer for the new movie, F1, with Brad Pitt, and one remarked that the movie looks like “it keeps you on the edge of your toes”. This is a mashup of “on (someone’s) toes” (alert and active) and “on the edge of (one’s) seat” (excited, nervous). Both are very close in meaning. Maybe ballet talk? A big thank you to Kristen Ann for uttering this one and Anthony Kovacs for sending it in!
A couple were watching a very popular t.v. show, and the husband clearly was not enjoying it. The wife remarked: “It isn’t wowing you over, is it?” This is a congruent conflation of “wowing (someone)” and “bowling (someone) over”, both meaning to thoroughly impress someone. A big thank you to Barry Eigen who heard this one and sent it in.
Did that malaphor wow you over? If so, check out my malaphor books, “He Smokes Like a Fish” and “Things Aren’t Rosy Dory”, both available on Amazon for cheap!
CNN was interviewing Rufus Gifford, a former United States Ambassador to Denmark about the Vances’ trip to Greenland and he said Vance “thumbed the Greenlanders in the eye”. This is a congruent conflation of “thumbed their noses” and “poked them in the eye”, both a description of disrespect. Of course, a thumb in the eye would also hurt and be disrespectful. A tip of the hat to Paula Garrety who heard this one and sent it in.
A friend of the contributor was helping out someone who is having financial difficulties. He said that the person is in “deep straits”. This is a congruent conflation of “in dire straits”, “in deep shit/trouble/water”, and “in a deep hole”, all referring to being in a very troublesome situation. Or maybe if Deep Purple and Dire Straits got together? A shout out once again to Verbatim for hearing this one and sending it in.
This one was overheard at a family event. Two family members were talking about the recent Signal-gate controversy. They thought this recent incident may be a problem for the current administration and one uttered this mashup. It is a conflation of “the walls are closing in” (feeling confined, or overwhelmed), and “tables have turned” (going from a weaker/stronger position to a stronger/weaker position). Props to mega contributor Verbatim for hearing this one and sending it in.
Did you like this malaphor? Check out my books on Amazon, including the laughfest, He Smokes Like a Fish and Other Malaphors. It’s a real page burner! https://www.amazon.com/dp/0692652205
Another from the Facebook world. Here was the post: “Stupid liberals. Is this the same as cutting your nose off to suit your face?” This is a conflation of “cutting off (one’s) nose to spite (one’s) face” (acting out in a way that injures oneself more than anyone else) and “suit (oneself)” (to do that which fulfills one’s own desires). The malaphor seems a little contradictory, but maybe the poster was referring to extreme plastic surgery? A big thanks to Lou Pugliese for spotting this one and sending it in.
Speaking of my friend Lou, he has written a new thriller, ‘Final Exam’. It is the Don Weston prequel to ‘Blame it on the Moon’. You can get these fine books on Amazon!
This jumbled mess was heard on the TV series MasterChef. It is a congruent conflation of “collect (oneself)” and “pull (oneself) together”, both meaning to calm oneself down and begin to act or think appropriately. A tip of the toque to Anthony Kovacs for hearing this one and sending it in.
This was noticed in a Facebook comment exchange. The commenter was talking about Trump and his control over the Department of Justice and the FBI and what he may do with these government agencies. This is a mashup of “rape the land” (destroy all the resources) and “bleed/suck/milk (something or someone) dry” (take all the resources that someone or something has available). There may also have been a Freudian slip in there. A big thanks to Diana Greenhalgh for spotting this one and sending it in!
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