We haven’t emptied all our cards
Posted: May 12, 2018 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: empty out, expressions, humor, language, Lawrence O'Donnell, malaphor, malaphors, Michael Avenatti, Michael Cohen, MSNBC, show one's cards, Trump, words Leave a commentThis was uttered by Michael Avenatti on the Lawrence O’Donnell MSNBC show when he was asked whether there will be any further disclosures regarding Michael Cohen. It is a mashup of “show (one’s) cards” (to make one’s plans or intentions known) and “empty (something) out” (to remove or pour all of the contents from something). Revealing and then emptying seems to be what he has done to date, so the malaphor makes sense. This is not the first malaphor uttered by Michael Avenatti. Check out some of his other great mashups, like “he folded like a cheap deck of cards”. A big thanks to Beatrice Zablocki for hearing this one. She’s a major contributor to this site. She’s the top of the notch!
I smell red flags
Posted: May 4, 2018 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: expressions, humor, language, malaphor, malaphors, red flag, smell trouble, words Leave a commentThis is a congruent conflation of “smell trouble” and “red flag(s)”, both meaning potential or imminent danger. “I smell a rat” (suspect someone is guilty of deception or betrayal) might also be in the mix. Of course, those red flags around gas leaks seem to conjure up this malaphor. A big thanks to Tim Geier who overheard this one!
Dancing on eggs
Posted: May 3, 2018 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Chris Matthews, expressions, humor, language, malaphor, malaphors, tap-tancing around, walking on eggshells, words Leave a commentThe new malaphor “Master” Chris Matthews, just described a delicate verbal situation as “dancing on eggs.” This is a beautiful mashup of “walking on eggshells” (to act with great care not to upset someone) and “(tap) dancing around” (evade a question). Both phrases involve careful speaking hence the mixup. Also walking and dancing are similar actions, contributing to the malaphor. Malaphor hunters will witness a goldmine of malaphors by listening to this guy. I am in awe. A big thanks to Beatrice Zablocki for hearing this one and passing it on
(Trump) shoots off the cuff
Posted: April 28, 2018 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: expressions, humor, language, Lawrence O'Donnell, malaphor, malaphors, Michael Avenatti, shoot your mouth off, shoots from the hip, speaks off teh cuff, Trump, words Leave a commentThis perfectly formed congruent conflation was uttered by Michael Avenatti on MSNBC (Lawrence O’Donnell). He was referring to Trump’s call to Fox and Friends. It is a mashup of “shoots from the hip” and “speaks off the cuff”, both meaning to speak spontaneously and frankly. “Shoots (one’s) mouth off” (to brag or tell secrets) may also have been in the mix, given the speaker and the subject matter. Interestingly, this is very similar to another malaphor posted previously, “(Trump) shoots from the cuff”, spoken by Megyn Kelly. https://malaphors.com/2015/09/05/trump-shoots-from-the-cuff/
This is one of many political malaphors. You can find many in my book “He Smokes Like a Fish and other Malaphors”, available on Amazon. Just click here: https://www.amazon.com/dp/0692652205
A big thanks to Frank King who spotted another one. He is quickly becoming the Frank King of Malaphors.
Stop wasting my wheels
Posted: April 25, 2018 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: expressions, humor, language, malaphor, malaphors, spinning our wheels, stop wasting my time, words Leave a commentA salesperson uttered this one, intending to say “time” instead of “wheels”. This is a nice congruent conflation of “wasting time” and “spinning (one’s) wheels”, both meaning to not use time productively. Car “wheels” can “spin” out if you accelerate quickly, and that visual may have been in the speaker’s mind when she spoke. A big thanks to Gary Kelly who heard this one and promptly recognized a nice juicy malaphor.
Most insurers are just burying their hands in the sand
Posted: April 23, 2018 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: bury your head in the sand, Clark Howard, expressions, humor, language, malaphor, malaphors, sitting on their hands, words Leave a commentNormally I would pass this off as just using the wrong word, in this case body part, in an expression – hands for heads. However, in context it is indeed a malaphor. On the Clark Howard podcast from 4/13/2018, Clark was discussing the insurance industry’s slow response to entering the short-term rental (e.g., AirBnB) market. He had just said the insurance companies were sitting on their hands, then shortly thereafter said, “Most insurers are just burying their hands in the sand.” He quickly corrected himself, but unfortunately did not shout “Malaphor!” at that moment as he apparently is not a follower of this site. What about it, Clark? @clarkhoward This is a mashup of “”sitting on (one’s) hands” (taking no action) and “burying (one’s) head in the sand” (to avoid a situation pretending it does not exist). Both expressions involve inaction, contributing to the mixup. Also the words “sand” and “hand” rhyme which also could have a culprit. A big thanks to Debbie Rose who heard this one.
Quench that itch
Posted: April 21, 2018 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: 93.7 the Fan, expressions, humor, Josh Miller, language, malaphor, malaphors, quench that thirst, scratch an itch, words Leave a commentThere is a local sports radio station here in Pittsburgh called “93.7 The Fan”. One of the commentators is Josh Miller, a former punter for the Pittsburgh Steelers. Josh was talking about how football players have trouble finding the excitement of the game after they retire or quit, and that it’s hard for them to “quench that itch”. This is a mashup of “quench that thirst” (to stop being thirsty) and “scratch an itch” (satisfy a need or desire). It’s possible that the speaker was thinking of “quashing” (repressing) something instead of quenching, but maybe dousing the itch with water does stop or repress it. By the way, Josh also uttered one of my favorite malaphors of all time, “he’s open game”, a mix of “open season” and “fair game”. https://malaphors.com/2017/08/05/hes-open-game-2/ Josh is unfortunately leaving 93.7 The Fan but we wish him the best and hope for more malaphors. Kudos to John Kooser for hearing this one and punting it in.
Want to quench that itch for more malaphors? Check out my book, “He Smokes Like a Fish and other Malaphors”, available for a cheap 6.99 on Amazon!
We’re going to have to pull the bullet
Posted: April 19, 2018 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: bite the bullet, expressions, humor, language, malaphor, malaphors, pull the plug, words Leave a commentMy running partner uttered this one today. He was talking about having to complete something that was needed to be done for a long time. It is a mashup of “bite the bullet” (to do or accept something unpleasant) and probably “pull the plug” (to force something to end). “Pulling teeth” (to do something that is very difficult) also may be in play as the speaker may have conjured up “teeth” when he thought of “bite”. “Pull some strings” (to use the power or influence over others) might also have been in the speaker’s mind. Finally, malaphor follower Sally Adler suggested “pull the trigger” (make a decision). This certainly is a possibility given “bullet” in the other idiom. In fact, I believe this is the mashup as in context the speaker was talking about having to make a decision. Bravo Sally! Or perhaps he was thinking literally of a bullet puller, a device to safely remove a bullet from a gun. A big thank you to Dan Geier for unintentionally saying this one, recognizing it as a malaphor, and letting me post it.
We’re just shooting ourselves in the dark!
Posted: April 18, 2018 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: expressions, humor, language, malaphor, malaphors, shoot yourself in the foot, shot in the dark, words Leave a commentWhen discussing a problem that they had been trying to troubleshoot for a rather long time, the submitter’s coworker exclaimed “At this point we’re just shooting ourselves in the dark!” This is a mashup of “shooting yourself in the foot” (to damage or impede’s one’s own plans) and “a shot in the dark” (a guess or estimate). The words “shoot” and “shot” are the culprits here. As the submitter, Ian, says, “Perhaps a bit darker than either taking shots in the dark or shooting ourselves in the feet, but it certainly got her point across.” This one reminds me of one of my favorite malaphors posted on this site, “It’s a crap in the dark.” https://malaphors.com/2012/12/26/its-a-crap-in-the-dark/. Now that’s dark!
A big thanks to Ian for sharing this one.
Trump will do anything to avoid that rock being peeled back
Posted: April 16, 2018 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Donny Deutsch, expressions, humor, language, malaphor, malaphors, Michael Cohen, Morning Joe, onion peeled back, Trump, turn over every stone, words 1 CommentThis gem was uttered by Donny Deutsch, American ad executive and television personality, on “Morning Joe”. He was referring to potential documents by Trump’s personal lawyer that could reveal past business dealings. It is a congruent conflation of “rock being turned over” and “onion being peeled back”, both meaning to uncover something that is concealed. This was uttered around Easter, so perhaps Mr. Deutsch had the resurrection image in his mind. Certainly the similar phrases “peeling back” and turning over” added to the confusion. A big thanks to Mike Kovacs for hearing this and sending it in.
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