Okay folks. Question time!
What's your favourite malapropism?
Today I learned that "spitting image" is a malapropism! But we're not sure if it comes from "spit and image" (from "he's the very spit of..." someone else), or - and I think this makes more sense - *spirit and image*, deformed over time. But so many forms have been used, no one knows for sure!
Other fun ones:
On tender hooks ("tenterhooks")
A Freudian slip is when you say one thing but you mean your mother.
What's your favourite?
Shakespeare:
In Much Ado About Nothing, Constable Dogberry uses multiple malapropisms—At one point, he says, “Our watch, sir, have indeed comprehended two auspicious persons.” There are two malapropism examples in this line: He should have said “apprehended,” not “comprehended,” and “suspicious” rather than “auspicious.”
I do so love the Shakespearean malapropisms!
He was working on so many layers: clever, vulgar insinuations for the rabble in the pit, but also wordplay like this, that only those in the more educated classes would have grasped.
What fun with the language had he. :)
@corlin The "auspicious" error is understandable since 's' is next to 'a' on a qwerty keyboard. 😜😜
@MLClark