Trump led us down the tubes
Posted: January 8, 2021 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: humor, language, malaphors, Trump, words Leave a commentThis beauty was seen on a Facebook comment, discussing Trump supporters storming the United States Capitol. It is a conflation of “going down the tubes” (to become much worse) and I think, given the context, “lead (someone) down the garden path” (to deceive or mislead someone). The mashup takes on a whole new meaning, and describes the situation perfectly. Interestingly, I posted a previous malaphor that Trump uttered and is a close one: “Clinton is selling them down the tubes”. See https://malaphors.com/2016/08/28/clinton-is-selling-them-down-the-tubes/
A big thank you to David Stephens for spotting this one and sending it in!
He’s thrown Mitch McConnell out of the bus
Posted: January 6, 2021 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Douglas Brinkley, humor, idioms, language, throw him under the bus, throw out the window Leave a commentDouglas Brinkley, professor of history, Rice University, was being interviewed on CNN. He was asked what he thought Trump was doing to the Republican Party. Brinkley responded by saying Trump was dividing the Republican Party and “ he’s thrown Mitch McConnell out of the bus”. This is a mashup of “throw (someone) under the bus” (avoid blame by allowing someone else to take responsibility) and “go out (of) the window” (discard or toss a plan or way of thinking). “Under” and “out of” are the culprits here. The phrase “throw (someone) under the bus” has been mashed up a lot. See, for example, other variants on the website such as “he can drink anybody under the bus” – https://malaphors.com/2018/08/29/he-can-drink-anybody-under-the-bus/ and “Trump is not going to throw Paul Ryan over the bus” https://malaphors.com/2017/04/05/trump-is-not-going-to-throw-paul-ryan-over-the-bus/. By the way, he did. A big thanks to Brenda Hubbard for hearing this one!
Press the envelope
Posted: January 4, 2021 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: humor, idioms Leave a commentKurt Warner on NFL Network’s Saturday Night Football uttered this mashup. It is a congruent conflation of “press the issue” and “push the envelope”, both meaning to exceed the test the limits of something. “Press” and “push” are similar in sound and meaning, so I think that’s the culprit here. A big thanks to timmyk for hearing this one and sending it in.
Republicans didn’t blink twice
Posted: January 2, 2021 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: common dreams, didn't blink, don't think twice, humor, Robert Reich Leave a commentFrom Robert Reich: “Republicans didn’t blink twice when they handed out $6.3 billion in tax breaks to their wealthy corporate backers, but when it came to getting direct relief to struggling Americans $600 was the best they could do. Their priorities couldn’t be clearer.” https://www.commondreams.org/views/2020/12/25/how-richest-1-percent-came-out-big-winners-covid-relief-bill
This is a mashup of “did not blink” (to not show any shock or surprise) and “not think twice” (act or do something without hesitating). “Blink” and “think” rhyme, contributing to this mental hiccup. A tip of the hat to Barry Eigen for spotting this subtle one.
He’s paid his time
Posted: December 28, 2020 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Ali Velshi, humor, idioms, malaphors, paid your dues Leave a commentAli Velshi on MSNBC was talking about pardons, and those who should be pardoned. He then uttered this nice congruent conflation of “done (one’s) time” and “paid (one’s) dues/debts”, both meaning to have served a sentence. A tip of the Santa hat to Frank King for hearing this one and sending it in.
You’re a one-horse pony
Posted: December 23, 2020 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: humor, idioms, Joe Biden, language, malaphors, one-horse town, one-trick pony, Peter Doocy 2 CommentsFox News’ Peter Doocy asked President-elect a question : “Mr. President-elect, do you still think that stories about your son Hunter were Russian disinformation?” Biden responded, “Yes, yes and yes. God love you, man. You’re a one-horse pony, I tell ya.” Here’s the exchange:
This is a great mashup of “one-trick pony” (someone who is limited to one talent or repeats the same thing) and “one-horse town” (small, unimportant place). Both have the word “one” in them and of course are tied with the equestrian theme. Since this was uttered just a few days before Christmas, the song “Jingle Bells” and “a one-horse open sleigh” might have been on the President-elect’s mind. A tip of the Santa toque to Bruce Ryan who spotted this one first. Others who sent this one in include Ron MacDonald, nutshell_blogger, Robert McLaughlin (via Steve Grieme) and Fred Martin. They are all certainly not one-horse ponies!
They turned up the notch
Posted: December 21, 2020 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: humor, idioms, language, malaphors, Stephen Bardo Leave a commentStephen Bardo, former NBA star and now basketball analyst for Fox Sports One, was commenting at the end of the Indiana/Butler basketball game how Indiana came back strong in the second half. This is a mashup of “turn up the heat” and “take it up a notch”, both meaning to do something with more determination or intensity. This is a classic congruent conflation, mixing two similar meaning idioms together. They tend to be subtle and therefore a little more difficult to spot. Kudos to Bruce Ryan for hearing this one and calling it in.
All that and a bowl of chips
Posted: December 16, 2020 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Al Sharpton, all that and a bag of chips, bowl of cherries, humor, language Leave a commentAl Sharpton said this one on MSNBC’s Morning Joe. It is a nice mashup of “all that and a bag of chips” (something very special) and “bowl of cherries” (very pleasant, wonderful). This one is close to a congruent conflation as both idioms refer to something positive. Sharpton might have been thinking about that ubiquitous bowl of potato or tortilla chips parked on the cocktail table for Sunday football.
The phrase “all that and a bag of chips” appears to be new slang, with origins perhaps as recent as the 90s. The phrase is credited to Subway, where initially a bag of chips was included in the price, so you got “all that and a bag of chips.” A big shout out to Mike Kovacs who heard this one and texted it in.
I’m in hog city
Posted: December 14, 2020 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: fat city, hog heaven, humor, idioms, language, malaphors Leave a commentThe speaker was enjoying himself, and unintentionally uttered this perfectly formed congruent conflation of “in hog heaven” and “fat city”, both meaning pleasant situations (the latter usually referring to a state of wealth). “Living high off the hog” (to prosper or live very well) could also be in the mix, as it has the same meaning as “fat city”. A big thanks to Bill Belanger for blurting out this one and sending it in! Oink oink.
I have been beating the horn
Posted: December 10, 2020 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: beating the bushes for, humor, Jeremy Harris, malaphors, Seth Myers, words Leave a commentJeremy Harris, actor and playwright, was on Late Night with Seth Myers. He was talking about the federal theater project and how enthusiastic he was about it. This is a conflation of “beating the drum for” (promoting someone or something) and “blowing/tooting (one’s) own horn” (boast or brag about one’s abilities). “Beating the bushes” (trying very hard to achieve something) might be in play here as well given the context. And no, the subject was not masturbation. A big thanks to Sam Edelmann who heard this one and sent it in!
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