They (schools) should get with the drill
Posted: July 20, 2020 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: expressions, get with the program, humor, know the drill, Larry Kudlow, malaphor, words 2 CommentsLarry Kudlow, White House economic advisor, was talking about the importance of schools reopening in the fall despite the coronavirus. “The president has been very vocal about going back to school. And I would add to that, as I said, all these fancy colleges and universities, of which I went to one,” Kudlow told reporters. “They should get with the drill, you know?” https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/506840-trump-economic-adviser-says-returning-to-school-amid-pandemic-is-not
This is a mashup of “get with the program” (to conform or fall in line with what is expected) and “know the drill” (to be familiar with what happens without having to be told). These two idioms both refer to someone getting something done without being told, and so it is almost a congruent conflation. Maybe Mr. Kudlow was thinking about all the retrofitting construction that might be required in light of the virus. Lots of drills will be needed. A big thanks (again) to Frank King, who heard this one on the Malaphor channel, MSNBC (The 11th Hour).
Trump coddles up to Putin
Posted: July 15, 2020 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: coddle, cuddle up, expressions, humor, Joe Biden, malaphor, mashups, Trump, words Leave a commentThis one comes on the heels of my last malaphor, both uttered by Joe Biden in the same speech. See https://malaphors.com/2020/07/13/the-chinese-are-spending-multiple-billions-of-dollars-trying-to-own-the-technology-of-the-future-while-we-sit-with-our-thumb-in-our-ear/
This one appears near the end of the speech. Here is the text:
The only thing that can tear America part, and I mean this sincerely, no foreign country, not the way he coddles up to, well, I shouldn’t even get into this, but coddles up to Putin and others. They can’t tear us apart.
This is a mashup of “cuddle up to” (get close to, ingratiate) and “coddle” (treat tenderly). A big thanks to Frank King for hearing this one on Morning Joe!
The Chinese are spending multiple billions of dollars trying to own the technology of the future while we sit with our thumb in our ear
Posted: July 13, 2020 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: close your ears, cover your ears, expressions, humor, Joe Biden, language, malaphors, thumb up our ass, words Leave a commentDemocratic presidential nominee Joe Biden uttered this one in his speech last week in Dunmore, PA. I believe this is a body part mashup of “close your ears (to something)” or “fingers in your ears” (ignore something) and “have (one’s) thumb up (one’s) ass” (not doing what you should be doing). Not sure this one was on the teleprompter. If not, perhaps Joe changed his mind mid- phrase when he was about to utter the word “ass”. You can find the quote here: https://www.politico.com/news/2020/07/09/joe-biden-economic-plan-355416
A big thanks to Fred Martin and Beatrice Zablocki for both catching this one live and sending a quick email to me. I have a feeling that the next few months will bring an abundance of malaphors. Keep your eyes and ears peeled!
Introducing my new Malaphor book: “Things Are Not Rosy-Dory: Malaphors From Politicians and Pundits”
Posted: July 3, 2020 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: expressions, humor, malaphors, Things are not Rosy-Dory, words Leave a comment
We turned the curve
Posted: July 1, 2020 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: ahead of the curve, Chris Hayes, expressions, flattened the curve, humor, Latoya Cantrell, malaphor, MSNBC, turned the corner, words Leave a commentLaToya Cantrell, mayor of New Orleans, was discussing police actions and public safety on the MSNBC show, “All In with Chris Hayes”. This is a mashup of “turned the corner” (begun to have improvement or success after a difficult or troubling period) and “ahead of the curve” (better than average). Both idioms are about success or improvement. Although the topic was not about the pandemic, “flatten the curve” (slowing down the spread of a disease) was probably on the speaker’s mind as well. A big thanks to Frank King for hearing this one. You can hear this malaphor at approximately 16 minutes into the show:
Can you imagine living in a mind frame like that?
Posted: June 29, 2020 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: expressions, frame of mind, humor, language, malaphor, mindset, words Leave a commentThe speaker was commenting on another person’s political statement that was based on a lie rather than fact. It is a rare, three-way malaphor, combining “frame of mind” (mental or emotional attitude or mood), “mindset” (a person’s attitudes or opinions formed from earlier experiences), and “living in a world of (one’s) own” (consumed by one’s thoughts or imagination). A big thanks to David Barnes for hearing and spotting this unicorn in the malaphor wilds.
There is a silver lining at the end of the tunnel
Posted: June 24, 2020 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: every cloud has a silver lining, expressions, humor, idioms, language, light at the end of the tunnel, malaphor, words 1 CommentAt first blush, this looked more like a mixed metaphor than a malaphor, but on close inspection it is indeed a mashup of two idioms. This one comes from the local news in Baltimore: a Baltimore City official was giving an update on trash/garbage pickup problems, and trashmen were off work as a result of the coronavirus. Here is the quote:
“This last week has been extremely difficult for everyone involved, but there is a silver lining at the end of that tunnel,” Chalmers said. “The Eastern District will be back up and running tomorrow. If you can’t hear the sigh of relief in my voice, I’m glad that they’re coming back.”
It is a mix of “every cloud has a silver lining” (every bad situation holds the possibility of something good) and “light at the end of the tunnel” (a period of hardship is nearing its end). Both expressions involve a bad situation turning better, so this malaphor perhaps means a doubly bad situation made doubly better? Or maybe the official was thinking of silver linings for the trashcans. A big thanks to Fred Martin for hearing this one and sending it in!
Building a case that will withstand muster
Posted: June 22, 2020 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: expressions, Gerald Griggs, humor, malaphor, pass muster, withstand scrutiny, words Leave a comment
Things kind of petered off
Posted: June 8, 2020 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: expressions, humor, language, malaphor, malaphors, petered out, tapered off, words Leave a commentThis unfortunately comes from a sad passage in an article about Covid-19 deaths, but it’s a malaphor nonetheless. Here’s the sentence: “And then things kind of petered off a little bit in those areas, and now we’re kind of seeing it getting closer and wondering when we’re gonna have to deal with this. But again, we’re preparing for it as best as we can in the hospitals that I’m working for.” This is a congruent conflation of “petered out” and “tapered off”, both meaning to diminish gradually and then stop. Here’s the link to the article: https://link.esquire.com/view/5976491c487ccd1f468b4eedc874i.3ql/6cadebe4
A special thanks to Barry Eigen for spotting this one, and for his wise counsel about not posting a descriptive picture of this malaphor.
The ball’s on them
Posted: June 5, 2020 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: ball's in your court, expressions, humor, language, malaphor, onus is on them, words Leave a commentUttered by an engineer at a conference call. This is a nice congruent conflation of ” the ball’s in your court” and “the onus is on them”, both meaning under one’s control or responsibility. I suppose if the ball is not only in your court but actually ON you then you might have a heightened responsibility. Malaphors are like that sometime; they improve our established idioms. This one is similar to a previous post, “The ball’s in your hand now”. https://malaphors.com/2018/07/04/the-balls-in-your-hand-now/
A big thanks to Mike Kovacs for hearing this one and sending it in.
The ball’s on you to discover more malaphors by getting my book, “He Smokes LIke a Fish and Other Malaphors”, available on Amazon. Just click on the link here: https://www.amazon.com/dp/0692652205. Also stay tuned for my upcoming malaphor book dedicated to those mashups uttered by politicians and pundits over the past four years. It is top of the notch!
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