Negotiating with Trump is like trying to talk to Jello
Posted: January 11, 2019 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: cnn, humor, idioms, language, malaphor, nail jello to the wall, Richard Blumenthal, talking to a wall, Trump, wordplay, words Leave a commentSenator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) uttered this gem on CNN January 4, 2019. The context is regarding the recent Government shutdown over Trump’s proposed wall. This is a conflation of “like talking to a wall” (a futile conversation because the other party is not listening) and “like nailing Jello to a wall” (a futile attempt at something). Both idioms contain the word “wall” (appropriate in context, right?) and both concern something that is futile (a conversation or an attempt). A hat tip to Tom Justice for hearing this one!
Top of the crop
Posted: January 10, 2019 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: cream of the crop, expressions, humor, Illy, malaphor, top notch, top of the heap, wordplay, words Leave a commentThis gem was seen on the sleeve of an Illy cup of coffee (see picture below). While it may not be unintentional (Illy is an Italian coffee company, so who knows?) it was too good to pass up. It is a conflation of “top of the heap” and “cream of the crop”, both meaning superior to others or the very best. This one is similar to a malaphor posted a few years ago, “He is the top of the notch”. https://malaphors.com/2012/12/11/he-is-the-top-of-the-notch/
A big thanks to Steve Grieme for spotting this one in sunny St. Petersburg, Florida, and taking a picture of it!
The guardrails are coming off
Posted: January 9, 2019 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: cnn, expressions, humor, language, malaphor, off the rails, Trump, wheels are coming off, wordplay, words 2 Comments
Nothing to shake a home about
Posted: January 7, 2019 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: expressions, humor, idioms, Joe Theismann, malaphor, malaphors, nothing to shake a stick at, nothing to write home about, Redskins, wordplay, words Leave a commentJoe Theismann, the ex-Redskins quarterback, was discussing the 2018 Redskins on a local D.C. sports talk radio show and in particular the average wide receiver corps. This is a mash up of “more (something) than you can shake a stick at” (a very large number) and “nothing to write home about” (not especially remarkable or noteworthy). This is an interesting one as the two idioms have almost opposite meanings – a perfect example of an incongruent conflation. Maybe Joe was thinking of an earthquake with homes shaking when he uttered this one. A big thanks to Joe Welch who heard this one and sent it in.
A rose is a rose by any other name
Posted: January 4, 2019 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: expressions, Gertrude Stein, Hardball, humor, language, literature, malaphor, MSNBC, Shakespeare, words Leave a commentThis is a nice literary malaphor, uttered on the MSNBC show Hard Ball . It is a congruent conflation of Shakespeare’s “A rose by any other name” and Gertrude Stein’s sentence “a rose is a rose is a rose”, both interpreted as meaning things are what they are. A big thanks to Mike Kovacs for hearing this conflation of two famous lines in literature.
He had a hissing contest
Posted: January 3, 2019 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: 93.7 the Fan, Antonio Brown, expressions, hissy fit, humor, malaphor, pissing contest, Ron Cook, Steelers, wordplay, words Leave a commentRon Cook, a Pittsburgh Post-Gazette sports writer, uttered this beauty on the sports talk radio show, 93.7 The Fan. He was summarizing Steelers’ wide receiver Antonio Brown’s out of control behavior and that Brown had “a hissing contest” with one of the coaches. This is a conflation of “pissing contest” (useless or trivial argument) and a “hissy fit” (a childish temper tantrum). Both idioms actually fit the context, a rarity in malaphors. The rhyming of hissing and pissing also contributed to the mashup. A big thanks to John Kooser for hearing this one and sending it in.
Trump is hunkering in
Posted: December 31, 2018 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: digging in, Elise Jordan, expressions, humor, hunkering down, language, malaphor, malaphors, MSNBC, Trump, wordplay, words Leave a commentThis was uttered by Elise Jordan on MSNBC, as she was describing Trump alone in the White House. It is a congruent conflation of “digging in” and “hunkering down”, both meaning to get started in working on something or alternatively to seek refuge in a particular place. A big thanks to Frank King for catching this one.
It stuck out like a sore eye
Posted: December 27, 2018 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: expressions, humor, malaphors, sight for sore eyes, stuck out like a sore thumb, words Leave a commentDescribing a poor choice of paint color on a porch, the speaker uttered this one. It is a nice mashup of “stuck out like a sore thumb” (very conspicuous) and “sight for sore eyes” (overjoyed to see someone after a long absence). Perhaps the speaker was thinking about a thumb in the eye after viewing the paint job. In any event, a big thanks to Mal for sharing this one he remembered from years ago.
The government pulled the wool over him
Posted: December 21, 2018 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Ali Velshi, expressions, humor, malaphor, Matt Apuzzo, MSNBC, pulled one over on him, pulled the wool over his eyes, Trump, wordplay, words Leave a commentOn the Ali Velshi MSNBC show, Matt Apuzzo was talking about General Flynn and that some believe the government tricked him. He then uttered this nice malaphor, which is a congruent conflation of “pull the wool over (one’s) eyes” and “pull one over on him”, both meaning to trick or deceive. The operative word here is “pull” which appears in each idiom. A big thanks to Hawk-eared Frank King for hearing this gem.
Sitting behind the driver’s seat
Posted: December 17, 2018 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: behind the wheel, expressions, humor, in the driver's seat, malaphor, malaphors, NPR, On Point, words Leave a commentThis one has to be read in context. On the December 10, 2018 “On Point” NPR podcast, a person was discussing self-driving cars. “I felt safer sitting in the back seat of that driver-less vehicle than I did sitting behind the driver’s seat of my own car’. https://www.npr.org/podcasts/510053/on-point
This is a mashup of “in the driver’s seat” and “behind the wheel”, both meaning to take charge. The speaker wasn’t thinking of either idiom, but was certainly confusing his words. If you are in the back seat of one car, how is that different than being behind the driver’s seat of the other car? A big thanks to Alan “Moose” Richardson for hearing this one.
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