Even when he’s lying out of his teeth
Posted: December 11, 2024 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Ben Wikler, expressions, humor, malaphors, mixed idioms, The Daily Show, Trump, words Leave a commentBen Wikler, the current chair of the Wisconsin Democratic Party, was on The Daily Show and speaking about how Trump’s habit of speaking before he thinks appeals to so many voters. Wikler added, “even when he’s (Trump) lying”. You can catch this on the December 9, 2024 show at the 32:31 mark.
This is a congruent conflation of “lying through (one’s) teeth” and “talking out of (one’s) ass”, both describing one who lies brazenly. A big thanks to Mike Kovacs for hearing this beauty and sending it in. This malaphor was also submitted a few years ago by Lou Pugliese in a different context – https://malaphors.com/2019/03/11/shes-lying-out-of-her-teeth/
Democracy is hanging by a string
Posted: December 9, 2024 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: All In With Chris Hayes, expressions, humor, malaphors, mixed idioms, words Leave a commentThis one was heard on the All In with Chris Hayes podcast, episode 241k, at 1:28:
Listen on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/all-in-with-chris-hayes/id1314170606?i=1000679274189
This is a mashup of “hanging by a thread” (something is in a dangerous state and likely to fail) and I think “have (someone) on the string” (to keep someone awaiting a decision). Threads and strings are similar so it seems logical that something would be hanging by a string, but to date it’s not an actual idiom. A big thanks to Frank King for hearing this one and sending it in!
Meshing on all cylinders
Posted: December 6, 2024 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: expressions, humor, malaphor, malaphors, Nick Sirianni, Philadelphia Eagles, words Leave a commentThe coach of the football team, the Philadelphia Eagles, was asked about the team’s collapse last year:
“Last year is over. We don’t care about last year,” Sirianni said on Sunday. “We learned what we needed to learn from last year and what we needed to do off of that. This year, it’s a different group of guys. This is a different team that’s gelling and meshing on all cylinders right now. With that being said, you are only as good as your last game. We’ve got a big game coming up this weekend.” Here is the link to the entire interview:
This is a mashup of “meshing with (someone)” (working well together) and “hitting on all cylinders” (performing at maximum efficiency). Both idioms describe working together and the malaphor could thus be a congruent conflation. Props to Linda Bernstein for spotting this one in the Philadelphia Inquirer and sending it in!
It will be a smooth breeze
Posted: November 22, 2024 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: expressions, humor, John Shumway, KDKA, language, malaphors, mixed idioms, words Leave a commentPittsburgh traffic report on KDKA: John Shumway was talking about an accident which was backing up traffic, but that once you got by the accident driving “will be a smooth breeze”. This is a congruent conflation of “smooth sailing” and “a breeze”, both meaning easy progress without difficulty or impediment.
A big thanks to Dan Geier for hearing this one and sending it in!
There are lots of stakes
Posted: November 19, 2024 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: All In With Chris Hayes, blended idioms, expressions, humor, malaphors, Melanie Zanona, mixed idioms, words Leave a commentMelanie Zanona, a Capitol Hill reporter, said this malaphor on the All In with Chris Hayes podcast when she was discussing the issue of whether the House Ethics Committee should release the report on Matt Gaetz. You can hear it at 20:15: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/all-in-with-chris-hayes/id1314170606?i=1000677135164
This is a mashup of “a lot at stake” (taking a big risk) and “stakes are high” (risk losing a lot or it will be dangerous). A big thank you to veteran malaphor spotter Frank King for noticing this one and sending it in.
I think Hillary really had the upper leg
Posted: November 8, 2024 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: expressions, Hillary Clinton, humor, Kamala Harris, malaphor, malaphors, New York times, words Leave a commentThis one was spotted in a New York Times article about how undecided voters are making up their minds. The one lady named Morgan said about the comparison between Hillary Clinton and Kamala Harris:
“I think it’s unfair. I think Hillary was much more versed going into her campaign. I feel that Harris is not nearly as prepared as Hillary was. I do see some similarities, in terms of the name-calling and belittling. I think Hillary really had the upper leg, if you had to compare the two.”
This is a nice congruent conflation of “have a leg up” and “have the upper hand” (have an advantage over someone or something). This is another example of a body part mix up. A big thank you to Linda Bernstein for spotting this one!
Sometimes we clash heads
Posted: November 4, 2024 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: idioms, malaphors, pizza, wordplay, words Leave a commentThis was heard on the You Tube video, “Meet the Krispy Pizza Kings of New York”. Here is the link to the video:
This is a congruent conflation of “clash with (someone or something)” and “butt heads”, both meaning to disagree with someone. A huge shout out to Martin Pietrucha for hearing this one and sending it in!
Donald Trump is the white elephant in the room
Posted: November 1, 2024 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: humor, malaphors, mixed idioms, MSNBC, Trump Leave a commentWilliam Cohen, who served as both a Republican U.S. Representative as well as a U.S Senator and Secretary of Defense under President Bill Clinton, said this malaphor on the MSNBC show The Beat with Ari Melber on October 23, nine days ago. It is a mashup of “elephant in the room” (obvious truth that is either being ignored or going unaddressed) and “white elephant” (a burdensome possession whose costs outweigh its value). While I have posted this one before (September 6, 2012), it is too good to pass up.
“The elephant in the room” seems to be a common expression mix-up. For example, I have posted:
“It’s the 800 pound elephant in the room” https://malaphors.com/2015/03/30/its-the-800-pound-elephant-in-the-room/
“I think that’s the pink elephant in the room” https://malaphors.com/2013/08/07/i-think-thats-the-pink-elephant-in-the-room/
In fact, I have a separate section devoted to the “elephant malaphor” in my book, “He Smokes Like a Fish and other Malaphors”, available on Amazon. https://www.amazon.com/dp/0692652205
A big thanks to Mike Kovacs for hearing this one and sending it in!
Over the rails
Posted: June 23, 2021 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: expressions, malaphors, words Leave a commentABC’s Martha Raddatz reporting on the upcoming Biden-Putin summit: “if they can come out together, if it doesn’t go out over the rails, that is some sign of success”. This is a congruent conflation of “off the rails” and “over the edge” both meaning to be out of control or excessive. A big thank you to Steve Grieme for hearing this one!
Straight off the hip
Posted: June 14, 2021 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: malaphors, words Leave a commentThis is a rare “tri-form” malaphor uttered by Jonah Johnston in the show, “7 Little Johnstons”. Jonah was talking about the sports podcast he and his two friends started. Here’s the clip:
This is a triple mashup, consisting of “straight from the heart” (with deep sincerity), “right off the bat” (immediately), and “shoot from the hip” (to speak rashly without considering the consequences). “Straight off the bat” is a valid idiom (see Free Dictionary), but I submit an uncommon one and probably not in the speaker’s mind. The above three seem to be swirling around in Jonah’s brain. A huge thank you to Mike Kovacs for hearing this unicorn.
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