| გვერდების რაოდენობა თემაში: < [1 2] | Like a Bowl in a China Shop თემის ავტორი: Tom in London
|
|---|
Samuel Murray 
ნიდერლანდები
Local time: 00:15
წევრი (2006)
ინგლისური -> აფრიკაანსი
+ ...
Andy Watkinson wrote:
Samuel Murray wrote:
Tom in London wrote:
Interesting article on the newly identified linguistic phenomenon of the eggcorn...
What would the difference be between eggcorns and popular etymology? Its the same thing, isn't it?
Eerrrm.....Samuel, the term was coined by the Language Log, a group of linguists.
The term was not coined b a "group of linguists", and certainly not by "The Language Log". It was coined by at most three people who were chatting about it in a linguist discussion group called "The Language Log". If you and I coin something here, surely one would not say "it was coined by ProZ.com, a group of translators".
...if you go to their website it explains exactly what constitutes an eggcorn and how they differ from malapropisms.
I have read their explanations about why an eggcorn is not popular etymology or mondegreens, but I'm not convinced. They believe popular etymology refers only to terms that have gained widespread acceptance, and they believe that mondegreens can only occur in poetry and song lyrics.
To me, popular etyomology is a process or mechanism, not a mere list of words. And just because mondegreens were originally found in poetry and lyrics doesn't mean the *exact same thing* in non-poetic text has to be called something else as if it is something completely different.
| | | | Andy Watkinson
ესპანეთი
Local time: 00:15
საიტის წევრი
კატალანური -> ინგლისური
+ ...
You originally wrote:
"I bet the eggcorn web site was started by a guy who discovered this phenomenon and couldn't figure out what the existing term was that we linguists use for it"
Well now you know you were wrong.
It wasn't a "guy" who didn't know what "we linguists" (sic) call it. It was a group of linguists.
Simple.
| | | | Samuel Murray
ნიდერლანდები
Local time: 00:15
წევრი (2006)
ინგლისური -> აფრიკაანსი
+ ...
| First impression | Aug 11, 2011 |
Andy Watkinson wrote:
You originally wrote:
"I bet the eggcorn web site was started by a guy who discovered this phenomenon and couldn't figure out what the existing term was that we linguists use for it."
Well now you know you were wrong.
When I wrote that I wasn't trying to state a fact, but simply voiced my first impression. First impressions are often off the mark (though they also often contain a grain of truth).
In this case, Chris Potts told Mark Liberman about a lady who used "egg corn" for "acorn", but felt that it was neither a mondegreen nor a case of popular etymology. Then Geoffrey Pullum said "let's call it an eggcorn", citing Mark's "convincing argument" that it isn't popular etymology. The whole of Mark's argument is one sentence: It's not a folk etymology, because this is the usage of one person rather than an entire speech community., which is hardly an argument and certainly not convincing.
| | | | Jack Doughty
გაერთიანებული სამეფო
Local time: 23:15
რუსული -> ინგლისური
+ ...
სამახსოვროში | Another one about a child mishearing a song title | Aug 11, 2011 |
(In this case, a hymn title) A child had a teddy bear whose eyes were not lined up properly. She was asked why she called this bear "Gladly", and said it was because of the hymn "Gladly, My Cross-Eyed Bear" (Gladly My Cross I'd Bear).
| | |
|
|
|
Andy Watkinson
ესპანეთი
Local time: 00:15
საიტის წევრი
კატალანური -> ინგლისური
+ ...
Jack Doughty wrote:
(In this case, a hymn title) A child had a teddy bear whose eyes were not lined up properly. She was asked why she called this bear "Gladly", and said it was because of the hymn "Gladly, My Cross-Eyed Bear" (Gladly My Cross I'd Bear).
Thanks Jack
It reminded me of the case of a Sunday school child who wrote:
"We are His flock, he doth us feed;
And for His sheep he doth a steak."
| | | | Melanie Nassar
შეერთებული შტატები
Local time: 01:15
გერმანული -> ინგლისური
+ ...
I still can't figure out exactly what constitutes an eggcorn, but here is my contribution (true story):
A child was constipated and her mother gave her a laxative and said she should tell her when she'd had a bowel movement. Sure enough, a while later, the child called her mother proudly, "Mommy, I had a bomb removerant!'
| | | | | My little brother loved train journeys... | Aug 12, 2011 |
... and his favourite bedtime prayer was "Lead us into the station..."
(Lead us not into temptation...)
| | | | | The Ears want what the ears want .... | Aug 13, 2011 |
I once played a group of Italian students a recording of a Meeting where a financial report was being discussed, as part of a business communications skills exercise. The speakers were all actors and the objective of the exercise was for the students to train their ears to English. After a few listens I asked the students what the meeting was about. One was sure it was a group of doctors as he kept hearing about a "disease" and the other thought it was about drawing nudes. The first student had... See more I once played a group of Italian students a recording of a Meeting where a financial report was being discussed, as part of a business communications skills exercise. The speakers were all actors and the objective of the exercise was for the students to train their ears to English. After a few listens I asked the students what the meeting was about. One was sure it was a group of doctors as he kept hearing about a "disease" and the other thought it was about drawing nudes. The first student had heard "this is" repeatedly, and the second had heard "figures". ▲ Collapse
| | | | | გვერდების რაოდენობა თემაში: < [1 2] | To report site rules violations or get help, contact a site moderator: You can also contact site staff by submitting a support request » Like a Bowl in a China Shop | Pastey | Your smart companion app
Pastey is an innovative desktop application that bridges the gap between human expertise and artificial intelligence. With intuitive keyboard shortcuts, Pastey transforms your source text into AI-powered draft translations.
Find out more » |
| | Trados Studio 2022 Freelance | The leading translation software used by over 270,000 translators.
Designed with your feedback in mind, Trados Studio 2022 delivers an unrivalled, powerful desktop
and cloud solution, empowering you to work in the most efficient and cost-effective way.
More info » |
|
| | | | X Sign in to your ProZ.com account... | | | | | |
Login to reply/comment 
