David Zapatka
July’s WOTM word, “eggcorn,” resulted in a flurry of reader comments.
“Just read your article in the Pioneer Press about eggcorns, and it made me chuckle. I didn’t realize they were called eggcorns, but I’ve encountered a few of the same “slip of the ears.” One that always annoys me is when people say ‘It’s a mute point.’ Moot, people, moot! I’ll be interested to know if others also write in with other common errors. Have a great day!”—Linda
“This doesn’t actually qualify as an eggcorn, but I got a laugh out of it regardless. I wear hearing aids and in spite of that I continue to hear words incorrectly. I had a call returned from my audiologist, Chris at Sonoran Ear, Nose, and Throat. My phone transcribed the message as, ‘Chris at snow on your nose and throat.’ I saved it just for a laugh when I need one. I enjoyed your article in the SaddleBrooke Ranch Roundup.—Barb L.
“This was a good one Dave! Never knew there was a name for this so now I have eggcorn added to my vocabulary. Some of the most common ones I hear is duck tape for duct tape, expresso for espresso, ice tea for iced tea. When I celebrated Valentine’s Day with my daycare kids, it was always Valentime’s Day.”—Judy Haberstroh
Reader Kim Park writes, “I’m a WTA tennis fan and reading your July ‘eggcorn’ column reminded me of an incident with American tennis player, Venus Williams. ESPN announcer Doug Adler, while commentating on Venus Williams’ match at the Australian Open, described Venus’ approach to the net as the guerilla effect, referencing the common term, ‘guerilla warfare,’ (‘Guerrilla Tennis’ was the name of a Nike TV ad from the 1990s featuring Andre Agassi and Pete Sampras in which the term ‘guerilla warfare’ originated) in professional tennis for aggressive play. Viewers heard ‘gorilla’ instead of ‘guerilla’ and flooded ESPN with complaints and requests for Adler to be fired. ESPN responded by pulling Adler from broadcasts after 24 years of ESPN broadcasting at the Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon, and US Opens. This happened all because of an eggcorn!”
I’m already receiving feedback on August’s WOTM, “sniglet.” Thank you for your feedback! Aren’t words fun?
Please submit your favorite eggcorns, sniglets, or any word you may like to share along with your insights and comments to [email protected].