Rusty is cowarding in the bathroom
Posted: September 6, 2016 Filed under: WORD BLENDS | Tags: coward, cowering, expressions, humor, language, malaphor, malaphors, WORD BLENDS, words Leave a commentLinda Bernstein, loyal malaphor follower, related this one from the Fourth of July. Fireworks were being set off all around, and Rusty the dog hid away in the interior bathroom to get away from the loud noises. Her grandson Nick then exclaimed that “Rusty is cowarding in the bathroom”. This is a nice word blend of cowering and coward. Cowards do often cower, and the words sound similar, so the mix up is a perfect blend. As many of you know, most malaphors are idiom blends but once in awhile two words are blended together to make a nice word blend malaphor. These are very different than portmanteaus, as I have explained in previous posts. A hat tip to Linda Bernstein for sending this beauty in!
He’s a man without an island
Posted: September 5, 2016 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: expressions, humor, language, malaphor, malaphors, man without a country, no man is an island, words 2 CommentsTwo buddies at dinner were discussing a young major-league baseball player who was being sent down to the AAA team and refused to report to minor league city as a protest for being demoted. Considering that the player now had no team to play for now and that the team was going to drop him as a result, he was referred to as “a man without an island”. This is a nice mash up of “man without a country” (expatriate or exile) and “no man is an island” (human beings necessarily depend on one another). A big thanks from the malaphor skipper to my little buddy Mike Kovacs for hearing this one and passing it on!
I’m on top of the moon!
Posted: September 3, 2016 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: expressions, humor, language, malaphor, malaphors, Olympics, over the moon, Rio, top of the world, Usain Bolt, words 1 Comment
We’re treading on dangerous waters here
Posted: September 2, 2016 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: expressions, humor, language, malaphor, malaphors, on shaky ground, treading lightly, venturing into uncharted waters, words Leave a commentThis was said in a pretrial conference in response to an unusual procedural request from the opposition. It is a nice mash up of “on dangerous (shaky) ground” (a proposal on an unstable or questionable foundation), “treading lightly (or carefully)” (cautious), and “venturing in uncharted waters” (going into unfamiliar or unclear situations). The latter seems particularly in the speaker’s mind considering the context. This malaphor is very similar to a recent one I posted: “I’m treading in uncharted waters”. https://malaphors.com/2016/08/03/im-treading-in-uncharted-waters/
A tip of the gavel to Tom Justice who heard this one and passed it on!
If you liked this mixed metaphor you will love the book He Smokes Like a Fish and other Malaphors. It’s available on Amazon for the cheap price of 6.99!
Students going there are going to have a huge foot up on everybody else
Posted: August 31, 2016 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: expressions, getting a leg up on someone, getting off on the right foot, humor, language, malaphor, malaphors, putting your best foot forward, words 1 CommentDon’t get your panties in an uproar
Posted: August 29, 2016 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: don't get your bowels in an uproar, don't get your panties in a twist, expressions, humor, language, malaphor, malaphors, Todd Christie, words 3 CommentsSage advice, and a nice mash up of “don’t get your bowels in an uproar” (don’t get excited) and “don’t get your panties (knickers) in a twist (bunch)” (don’t get upset over a trivial matter). Both idioms are very close in meaning, and both involve the lower extremity area (panties and bowels). They also both have the words “don’t get” and “in a”, adding to the confusion. This one is very close to a malaphor I posted in January 2015, “don’t get your panties in a ringer”, written by Todd Christie, brother of Chris Christie, in a Facebook comment, reacting to people commenting on the Governor celebrating the Dallas Cowboys playoff win with Jerry Jones in his box suite. See https://malaphors.com/2015/01/10/dont-get-your-panties-in-a-ringer/. And of course this one is similar to one of my all time favorites posted in 2012 – “don’t get your nose in an uproar”. https://malaphors.com/2012/08/31/dont-get-your-nose-in-an-uproar/
A big thanks to Donna Cosentino for writing this one on a Facebook comment and Rachel Schwemmer for spotting it!
Clinton is selling them down the tubes
Posted: August 28, 2016 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Anderson Cooper, Donald Trump, expressions, going down the tubes, humor, language, malaphor, malaphors, mixed metaphors, selling them down the river, words Leave a commentDuring an interview with Anderson Cooper this week, Donald Trump responded to a question from Anderson on why he called Hillary Clinton a bigot. Referring to African Americans, Trump said that Clinton is “selling them down the tubes.” This is a mash up of “selling them down the river” (harming or disappointing people who trusted you) and “going down the tubes” (to become much worse). “Down” is the culprit here, as it appears in both idioms. Also, I suspect the image of tubing down the river might have floated in Donald’s mind.
For the first time, I received a malaphor spotting from two people, both who are loyal malaphor watchers and followers, Mike Kovacs and Sally Adler. A yuuuge thanks to Mike and Sally for hearing this timely mixed idiom and sending it in!
If you liked this one from the political world, I have a whole chapter of malaphors uttered by politicians in my new book, “He Smokes Like a Fish and other Malaphors”, available on Amazon now!!
He threw caution out the window
Posted: August 26, 2016 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: expressions, humor, language, malaphor, malaphors, out the window, throw caution to the wind, words 1 CommentWhen this gem was uttered by her husband, Susan Edwards, a loyal malaphor follower, immediately contacted Malaphor Central (me) to report it. This is a mash up of “throw caution to the wind” (to take a risk) and “out the window” (gone or wasted). The hiccup here is obviously the words “wind” and “window”. The prepositions “to” and “out”, both indicating movement, also were mixed up. Perhaps this could be a new cliche, meaning someone who is extremely reckless and/or daring? A big thanks to Bob Edwards for uttering this one and Susan Edwards for hearing it and passing it on!
Throw caution out the window and pick up a copy of my new book on malaphors, “He Smokes Like a Fish and other Malaphors”! It’s available on Amazon at http://www.amazon.com/dp/0692652205.
Look what the cat dragged out of the bag!
Posted: August 24, 2016 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: cat out of the bag, expressions, humor, language, look what the cat dragged in, malaphor, malaphors, words Leave a commentThe speaker and his co-workers were serving as greeters for a Christmas Eve service. A mutual friend was approaching from a distance and the speaker casually but jokingly yelled this malaphor out. It is a nice mash up of two idioms involving the word “cat” – “look at what the cat dragged in” (exclamation about a person who just arrived, presumably late) and “the cat is out of the bag” (the secret has been revealed). A big thanks to Joel who uttered this mixed metaphor and for sending it in! I expect to see more from him as he has a reputation for unintentional idiom blending!
Hey, the cat has been dragged and is out of the bag about the new malaphor book that is sweeping the nation! It’s called He Smokes Like a Fish and other Malaphors and is available on Amazon NOW! It’s the top of the notch!
There is not enough respect shown to ordinary people busting their necks
Posted: August 22, 2016 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: breaking their necks, busting their butts, expressions, humor, Joe Biden, language, malaphor, malaphors, Morning Joe, MSNBC, Trump, words Leave a commentThis beauty was uttered by Vice President Joe Biden on MSNBC’s Morning Joe. He was talking about both parties and noting that they were not very good “at listening to the concerns of ordinary people busting their necks.” http://info.msnbc.com/_news/2016/07/27/35882707-morning-joe-news-joe-biden-says-the-democratic-party-overall-hasnt-spoken-enough-to-white-working-class-voters?lite
This is a nice congruent conflation of “busting their butts” and “breaking their necks”, both meaning to work very hard. The confusion not only stems from the similar meanings of both phrases but also the words “bust” and “break”. In addition, as noted here many times, body parts are often mixed up in the wonderful world of malaphors. A big thanks to Linda Bernstein for catching this in the NY Times and passing it on!
Did you like this one? Well, I have an entire section devoted to malaphors spoken by politicians in my new book He Smokes Like a Fish and other Malaphors! And malaphors are not partial to one political party. Read great ones uttered by Barack Obama, Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton, and more!!! Get it on Amazon now at http://www.amazon.com/dp/0692652205!
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