Comments on: 4 Exasperating Malapropisms

By: Travlee

Travlee — Thu, 28 May 2009 18:37:03 +0000

My favorite aunt always talks about far she walked on her threadmill. Don’t have the heart to correct her and I chuckle everytime I hear her say threadmill.

By: Sas Harris

Sas Harris — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 13:45:59 +0000

A radio announcer made me crazy one day by repeatedly asking people to call in and answer the question: “Is Justin Trudeau the epitome of his father Pierre Trudeau?” When I heard it the first time, I thought that someone would rush in and correct him as it was the question of the day and bound to be repeated. But no … it went on and on for the full half-hour.

I have also heard a newsreader on TV say someone was a “child protegee”

By: Loretta Woods

Loretta Woods — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 01:56:23 +0000

1. Years ago a school principal, who was a nun (a very intelligent lady, by the way) looked at some paper sculptures that hung from a classroom ceiling, and commented: “Those are interesting motels the children made.”

Making mobiles in elementary art education was an innovation at the time, and I guess the Sister hadn’t stayed at many motels.

2. My mother was intelligent in many ways, but her highest skills were not in English usage and vocabulary. One evening she thought my father’s making himself a large sandwich between supper and bedtime amounted to gluttony. “Don, you’re so gullible!” she scolded.

Maybe “gullible” sounds too much like “gobble.”

By: Loretta Woods

Loretta Woods — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 01:36:58 +0000

In a sermon I heard this morning, the priest kept repeating “preservere” for persevere. I think he used the mispronunciation 8 – 10 times. It was an otherwise good sermon, but “preservere” was distracting. I guess a case could be made that one who perseveres is preserving his resoluteness to continue in a struggle or effort — pressing on.

I hope to submit comments on other issues regarding misuse of words.

By: cmdweb

cmdweb — Sun, 01 Mar 2009 11:41:41 +0000

I think a lot of this stems from a limited vocabulary in daily use. Many of the misused words are not common in speech. That, combined with a general lack of reading these days, means a great many people either don’t know what some of these words are at all or are going on having heard them used but never seen them written.
Although not quite in the same league, but one that annoys me endlessly, is when people write ’should of’ instead of ’should have’.