He tried to steal the wind out of your sails
Posted: December 4, 2019 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: humor, language, malaphor, s thunder, steal one, take the wind out of one's sails Leave a commentThe submitter’s wife was talking about someone who was going to upstage him. This is a nice mashup of “steal your thunder” (garner the attention or prasie that one had been expecting for some accomplishment) and “take the wind out of your sails”(diminish one’s enthusiasm about something). Both phrases involve taking away something from someone. Also, sails and wind often are accompanied by thunder, right? A big thanks to Martin Pietrucha for hearing this one and passing it on.
What a flash from the past!
Posted: December 2, 2019 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: blast from the past, expressions, flashback, humor, language, malaphor, words Leave a commentThis was uttered in response to finding a cake topping used in childhood. It’s a congruent conflation of ‘blast from the past” and “flashback”, both describing something that evokes a sense of nostalgia. “Blast” and “past” are similar sounding. A big thanks to Nick Mamalis for saying this one and Elaine Hatfield for sharing it.
middle of the ground
Posted: November 25, 2019 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: expressions, humor, malaphor, malaphors, middle ground, middle of the road, words Leave a commentThe speaker was talking about taking a centrist approach. This is a nice mashup of “middle ground” (compromise) and “middle of the road” (moderate or centrist). Both idioms have the word “middle” and both describe the center of something, hence the mixup. A big thanks to Katie Norwood for uttering this one and sharing it!
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Let’s kick this down the line
Posted: November 22, 2019 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: down the line, expressions, humor, kick this around, malaphor, malaphors, up the line, words Leave a commentThe Queen of Malaphors, Naomi David, is back! She uttered this beauty, which is a mashup of “kick this around” (mull over or consider something) and “down the line” (in the future), creating a definition of thinking about something for the future. She may also have been thinking “up the line” (through the chain of command). And of course she may have been thinking of “kicking the can down the road” (avoiding making a decision) although I believe the context was brainstorming. A big thanks to Katie Norwood who passed this one on.
We’re as thick as two thieves in a pod
Posted: November 18, 2019 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: expressions, humor, language, like two peas in a pod, malaphor, malaphors, Scrubs, thick as thieves, words 2 CommentsThis one comes from the tv show Scrubs. While intentional, it’s a classic malaphor and worth posting (although it does go against the rules that the malaphor spoken or written should be unintentional). Still, too good to pass up. It’s a mashup (of course) of “thick as thieves” (a close alliance or friendship) and “like two peas in a pod” (similar interests or beliefs). This one works on many levels – similar idioms, and the rhyme of “peas” and “thieves”. A big thanks to Elly Pietrucha for spotting this one on a rerun.
Quid pro quo is one of these things to muddy the works
Posted: November 11, 2019 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: expressions, gum up the works, humor, Jim Himes, language, malaphor, malaphors, Meet the Press, muddy the waters, Trump, words Leave a commentThis gem was uttered by Congressman Jim Himes (D-CT) yesterday on Meet the Press, talking about the Trump impeachment inquiry. It is a mashup of “muddy the waters” (to make a situation less clear) and “gum up the works” (to interfere with the proper functioning of something). Both expressions refer to degrading something, and “works” and “waters” might have been jumbled by the phrase “water works”? A big shout out to Bruce Ryan who heard this one and passed it on. @jahimes @MeetThePress
You can hear this malaphor just about at the beginning of the video:
The top kahuna, Donald Trump
Posted: November 7, 2019 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: big kahuna, humor, language, malaphor, Nick Akerman, top dog, Trump Leave a comment
You dance with the devil you came with
Posted: November 4, 2019 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: dance with death, dance with the devil, dance with the one who brought you, humor, idioms, Ike Reese, language, malaphor, Shania Twain, WIP Leave a comment
The book is running away from the charts
Posted: November 2, 2019 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: expressions, humor, language, malaphor, malaphors, off the charts, ran away with, words Leave a commentA TV host was interviewing an author, and commenting on the author’s successful book (on the NY Times bestseller list). This seems to be a mashup of “run away with” (win handily) and “off the charts” (spectacular). Both phrases refer to something or someone having success, hence the mixup in context. A big thanks to Verbatim for hearing this one and sending it in.
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Don’t beat a horse while it’s down
Posted: October 31, 2019 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: beat a dead horse, expressions, horse, humor, kick him while he's down, malaphor, words 2 CommentsIn the seemingly never ending mashups of idioms involving the word “horse”, I give you this latest one, uttered by my grandnephew Nathan Hatfield. His Dad was asking him about a project he was working on. It is a mashup of “Kick (one) when (one) is down” (to criticize someone wh has already suffered a setback) and “beat a dead horse” (to continue to focus or talk about something). Idioms that include the word “horse” are for some reason continually mixed up. See my website and type in “horse”. You will be amazed. A big thanks to John Hatfield III for hearing this one and passing it on!
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