He’s crazy as a bat
Posted: March 21, 2019 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: batshit crazy, crazy as a loon, crazy like a fox, expressions, malaphor, malaphors, Trump, words Leave a commentYou can guess who the speaker was referring to. This is a nice congruent conflation of “crazy as a bedbug (or loon)” and “batshit crazy”, both describing someone who is insane. “Bats in the belfry” also come to mind, although that is an old-fashioned phrase. “Crazy like a fox” (clever) might have been in the mix, but I doubt it based on the person the speaker was referring to. Hint: he denigrates war heroes, and even when they’re dead.
I smell a fish
Posted: March 20, 2019 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: humor, malaphors, smell a rat, something fishy going on, words Leave a commentThis is a nice congruent conflation of “I smell a rat” and “there’s something fishy going on”, both meaning to be suspicious of some wrong doing. Of course, fish do smell, so no wonder the speaker was confused. This one reminds me of my malaphor book, “He Smokes Like a Fish and other Malaphors”. Have I mentioned it is available on Amazon? https://www.amazon.com/dp/0692652205
A big thanks to Claire Hooper for hearing this one and passing it on.
He’s like a kid in a china shop
Posted: March 18, 2019 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: bull in a china shop, expressions, humor, kid in a candy shop, language, malaphor, malaphors, words 2 CommentsI heard this one from a neighbor. She was talking about her husband’s love of gadgets, and that he recently received a new tool that he was crazy about. This is an incongruent conflation of “like a kid in a candy shop” (so excited about something that they behave in a child-like way) and “like a bull in a china shop” (clumsily destructive). The mixup derives from the similar sounding words “china” and “candy”, the word “shop” used in both phrases, and that the two phrases are equal in words and structure (“like a blank in a blank shop”).
Right out of the get-go
Posted: March 14, 2019 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: expressions, from the get-go, Getgo, Giant Eagle, humor, language, malaphor, malaphors, out of the gate, words Leave a commentThis was heard on a podcast. It is a nice congruent conflation of “from the get-go” and “right out of the gate” (immediately, right from the start). Lots of alliteration in this one, contibuting to the mashup. This is not a malaphor in Pittsburgh, however. It means “just finished getting gas”. A big thanks to Vicki Ameel-Kovacs for hearing this one!
It landed with a dud
Posted: March 13, 2019 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: a dud, humor, landed with a thud, malaphor, malaphors Leave a commentThis one was overheard at a meeting. Someone was describing a failed product launch. It is a congruent conflation of “landed with a thud” and “a dud”, both meaning something that did not work as intended, or was ineffective. Of course dud and thud rhyme and sound alike, likely the source of the malaphor. A big thanks to Peter Hopkins who heard this one and sent it in.
Is it “Defend On Your Own” night?
Posted: February 8, 2019 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: expressions, fend for yourself, malaphor, malaphors, stand on your own two feet, words 2 CommentsThe contributor says her husband says this when she doesn’t feel like cooking for dinner. The malaphor prompts a visual of the family opening the refrigerator and fighting for the best leftovers. This is a mashup of “stand on one’s (own) two feet” (act independently) and “fend for (oneself)” (take care of oneself without the assistance of others). I suppose the speaker was thinking of the word “fend” but uttered “defend” instead. A tip of the hat to Lori Snider for sending this one in!
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