eggcorn
Plausible wrong phrase
An eggcorn is a word or phrase that results from mishearing and reinterpreting another expression—like "eggcorn" itself, a mishearing of "acorn." Unlike simple errors, eggcorns substitute words that make a kind of sense: old-timers' disease for Alzheimer's disease, for all intensive purposes for "for all intents and purposes." The replacement words create plausible new meanings.
Minor error or misstep
- blunderFoolish, costly mistake
- mistakeWrong action or decision
- misinterpretationIncorrect understanding of meaning
- confusionMental disorientation or bewilderment
gaffe · flub · misconstrue · mix-up · muddle · goof · bungle · misstep
Misperceived lyric or phrase
- reanalysisStudying something again
- malapropismSound-alike word confusion
- language changeHow speech transforms over time
- neologismNewly created expression
psycholinguistics · reinterpretation · misconstruction · corruption · word formation · analogy
Misperceived lyric or phrase
- homophoneIdentically pronounced, differently spelled word
- soundalikeWords sharing pronunciation
- mispronunciationIncorrect vocal rendering
- garbleDistort into confusion
Irrelevant issue for debate
- bated breathRestrained breathing from suspense
- escape goatGoat that escapes
- for all intents and purposesVirtually, in practice
- deep-seatedFirmly established within
nip it in the bud · shoe-in · free reign · hone in · expresso · supposably · ice tea
slip
Minor error or misstep
- blunderFoolish, costly mistake
- mistakeWrong action or decision
- misinterpretationIncorrect understanding of meaning
confusion · gaffe · flub · misconstrue · mix-up · muddle · goof · bungle · misstep · spelling error
mondegreen
Misperceived lyric or phrase
- reanalysisStudying something again
- malapropismSound-alike word confusion
- language changeHow speech transforms over time
neologism · psycholinguistics · reinterpretation · misconstruction · corruption · word formation · analogy
mondegreen
Misperceived lyric or phrase
- homophoneIdentically pronounced, differently spelled word
- soundalikeWords sharing pronunciation
- mispronunciationIncorrect vocal rendering
moot point
Irrelevant issue for debate
- bated breathRestrained breathing from suspense
- escape goatGoat that escapes
- for all intents and purposesVirtually, in practice
nip it in the bud · deep-seated · shoe-in · free reign · hone in · expresso · supposably · ice tea
- word playpuns, palindrome, anagrams, anagram, spoonerism
- language errorsspelling error, spelling mistake, typo, misspelling, syntax error
- Mishearingsmondegreen, mondegreens, eggcorns, malapropism, malapropisms
- speech errorsslip of the tongue, mispronunciation, malapropism, malapropisms, spoonerism
- word errorsmalapropism, could of, would of, for all intensive purposes, escape goat
- Word Mix-upshomophone, homonym, malapropism, spoonerism, mondegreen
eggcorntypo
Printing mistake
malapropism · spoonerism · mondegreen · spelling mistake · slip of the pen
eggcornpun
Wordplay using double meanings
wordplay · portmanteau · neologism · coinage · witticism