Civility is disappearing before our hands
Posted: July 5, 2018 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Chris Jansing, disappear before our eyes, expressions, humor, malaphor, MSNBC, slipping through our fingers, Trump, words 1 CommentThis was heard on MSNBC, Jansing and Co. show. There was a discussion on civility in America and this malaphor was uttered. It is a mashup of “disappear before out eyes” (suddenly no longer visible) and I think “out of (someone’s) hands” (no longer in someone’s control). “Slip through (someone’s) fingers” might be in play, as it also refers to something missed or escaped. Fingers and hands are close in proximity. A big thanks to “Eagle-eared” Frank King!
Narc out
Posted: June 14, 2018 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: congruent conflation, humor, malaphor, Manafort, MSNBC, narc on, Rachel Maddow, rat out, Trump Leave a commentAnother gem from Rachel Maddow, the “Mistress of Malaphors”. She uttered this on her Friday, June 8, 2018 show, discussing the indictment of Konstantin Kilimnik and his past relations with the International Republican Institute:
Well, now those new felony charges today have been filed. Instead of
facing 23 felony charges, Paul Manafort, the Trump campaign chairman, is
now facing 25 felony charges. What ended up being the big surprise here
today is that Paul Manafort wasn`t just charged alone, the superseding
indictment wasn`t just for him, he was charged alongside Konstantin
Kilimnik, Kostya from the GRU, the guy who back in the day in Moscow was
suspected of narcing out this American pro-democracy outfit that the FSB
denounced as an enemy of the state after they somehow got a hold of the
internal workings of that organization.http://www.msnbc.com/transcripts/rachel-maddow-show/2018-06-08
This is a congruent conflation of “narc on” and “rat out”, both meaning to give authorities information on a crime, or to inform on someone. A big thanks to Frank King for hearing this one and sending it in.
Worked hand in arm with the Russians
Posted: June 6, 2018 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: arm in arm, expressions, hand in glove, humor, Lawrence Tribe, malaphor, MSNBC, Trump, words 1 CommentThis one was spoken by Constitutional Law expert Lawrence Tribe on MSNBC’s Chris Hayes show. He was discussing the issue of collusion. This is a nice mashup of “arm in arm” (closely allied or intimate) and “hand in glove” (suiting one another naturally). Hands and arms pop up frequently in malaphors. In fact, the misuse of body parts in expression seems to be one of the most common elements in malaphors. A big thanks to Frank King for spotting this one.
He should jump to the chase
Posted: June 2, 2018 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Ari Melber, cut to the chase, expressions, humor, jump at the chance, malaphor, malaphors, MSNBC, Randy Credico, Trump, words 2 CommentsRandy Credico uttered this one on MSNBC’s The Beat with Ari Melber the other night. Credico was talking about encouraging Adam Schiff to take the opportunity to meet with Julian Assange, saying “he should jump to the chase…” This is a mashup of “cut to the chase” (abandon the preliminaries and focus on what is important) and “jump at the chance” (seize the opportunity). Similar looking and sounding words “Chance” and “chase” probably were the culprits in this jumble. A big thanks to “Hawkear” Frank King for sharing this one.
If you haven’t already, you need to jump to the chase to buy my malaphor book, “He Smokes Like a Fish and other Malaphors”, available on Amazon for a mere $6.99. Let’s get to the chase and buy it!
The buck stops at the top
Posted: May 18, 2018 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: expressions, Ginger Gibson, Hardball, humor, malaphor, malaphors, MSNBC, the buck stops here, Trump, words Leave a comment
It was on the cards
Posted: May 14, 2018 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Bill Neely, expressions humor, in the cards, malaphor, malaphors, MSNBC, on deck, on the radar, Trump, words 3 CommentsMSNBC chief global correspondent Bill Neely uttered this one. He was talking about the recent release of the U.S. prisoners in North Korea and said that the release had been “on the cards” for awhile as they were moved to a hotel before release. This is a congruent conflation of “in the cards” and “on deck”, both meaning certain or likely to happen next. The mental mashup origin is clear in this one: the speaker probably was thinking “deck” which led him to “cards” as in “deck of cards”. Also in the mix might have been “on the radar” (considered important or noteworthy) considering the context. A big thanks to Bruce Ryan for hearing this one and sending it in!
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!
The President needs to come straight with the American people
Posted: May 9, 2018 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: be straight, come clean, Eric Swalwell, expressions, humor, Lawrence O'Donnell, malaphor, malaphors, MSNBC, Trump, words Leave a commentThis malaphor was uttered by Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-CA) on the MSNBC show The Last Word with Lawrence O’Donnell. It is a congruent conflation of “come clean” and “be straight” (be honest and straightforward). Kudos to that Malaphor Hunter Frank King, the Mental Health Comedian.
He gets a clean bill of goods
Posted: April 30, 2018 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: a clean bill of health, Chris Matthews, expressions, humor, malaphor, malaphors, MSNBC, sold a bill of goods, words Leave a commentThis was heard on MSNBC’s Hard Ball, and uttered by the new “Master of Malaphors”, Chris Matthews (I think I have posted at least four from this guy). It is a nice mashup of “”sold a bill of goods” (deceive someone) and “clean bill of health” (a report confirming the absence of fault in a person or thing). “Bill” is the commonality here. Not sure if Chris is having a few martinis before each show, but if so, I hope he continues. A big thanks to Super Malaphor Hunter Mike Kovacs for hearing this one! @hardballChris
Let’s not get ahead of our skis
Posted: April 26, 2018 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: ahead of the curve, Chris Hayes, Cory Booker, expressions, humor, malaphor, MSNBC, out over his skis, Trump, words Leave a commentSenator Cory Booker uttered this malaphor on MSNBC’s The Chris Hayes Show. He was talking about the Mueller investigation:
“Um, look, I’m one of those folks that says let’s go where the evidence leads,” he said. “Right now we have a special counsel that is doing a thorough investigation. Let’s not get ahead of our skis. Let’s make sure we support this special counsel’s investigation.” https://www.mediaite.com/tv/chris-hayes-comes-right-out-and-asks-it-in-interview-with-cory-booker-is-trump-a-criminal/
This is a mixture of “out over his skis” (get ahead of yourself) and “ahead of the curve” (leading in something). The two phrases are close in meaning and are both referring to leading in front. It appears the phrase “out over your skis” originated in the finance world. See this article for more on the origin: http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2012/05/where-did-the-phrase-over-his-skis-come-from.html
A big thanks to Frank King for hearing this one and passing it on!
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