eggcorn: a word or phrase that results from a mishearing or misinterpretation of another, an element of the original being substituted for one which sounds very similar. such a change isn't a mondegreen because it doesn't create a new meaning, and it isn't a spoonerism or a malapropis) because the swapped words sound the same; they're homophones.
the term was coined in 2003 as a result of a discussion on the language log website, in a discussion about a woman who misheard the word acorn as eggcorn.
now, show of hands: how many of you saw the title and the thumbnail, and thought, hold on a second. that's not right. eggcorns are a telling little eddy in the flow of communication, in which apocryphal definitions can become true as common use redefines reality. sorry to involve you in my little experiment all unwittingly; but i do find it terribly interesting how many people would catch, or accept, i'm doing just grate, thanks.
the term was coined in 2003 as a result of a discussion on the language log website, in a discussion about a woman who misheard the word acorn as eggcorn.
now, show of hands: how many of you saw the title and the thumbnail, and thought, hold on a second. that's not right. eggcorns are a telling little eddy in the flow of communication, in which apocryphal definitions can become true as common use redefines reality. sorry to involve you in my little experiment all unwittingly; but i do find it terribly interesting how many people would catch, or accept, i'm doing just grate, thanks.
now i just spent 20 minutes looking up eggcorns... acorns:)
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