Half-mast on land is correct in Canada.

A mast can be any sturdy, upright pole.

The common phrase ”exact same” - isn’t that redundant? I understand the two words used together are meant to emphasize the sameness of the subject but the two words seem overused together so the use for emphasis only seems lost. To me the phrase has become as irritating as the use of the word ”irregardless”.

ETA: neither of these are examples of a mondegreen. I think those are usually funny when identified.

Thank you, Annie! And KW. Those are among my vocabulary/language pet peeves. And while I'm at it, what about "past history". Isn't all history past?

@Suzieque Not when it keeps being repeated in current events….😱

JW - I never thought about “exact same” before but I think ”same” is often used as a higher level of similarity. ”All the boys wore the same jeans and white t-shirts” implies a uniform look without necessarily being the same brands. Exact same would.

Hot water heater always bugs me.

foas - great point! I’ll remember that for sure next time I hear the words.

Hot water heater - but of course! What else is a water heater meant to do? Good one!

FOAS - I know I've said hot water heater before. Never thought about it until now. :) I've been smart enough not to say ATM machine though. LOL.

My personal annoyance is plural vs. possessive. The number of people using inappropriate apostrophes when the word is plural makes me twitchy. It is everywhere now. I've seen it in advertisements, for the love of squirrels! "Baby's need lot's of supplies..." No. Just....no. (I feel dirty even having typed that...)

“neither of these are examples of a mondegreen”

KW, the correct term is tautology for saying the same thing twice.

Most perfect. That drives me nuts. Perfect is perfect. Something cant be more perfect than something else.

Thank you for mentioning less and fewer, another pet peeve of mine. Also over and more than.

I think this qualifies as a mondegreen. ”I could care less” instead of, ”I COULDN’T care less”.

tj

Or for seamstresses, ”You rip what you sew”. 😉

One phrase that always bothered me is "must needs". I guess it's another example of doubling up for emphasis.

In defense of hot water heater there are more than one kind of heater as in oil or gas or electric.

I object to the various qualifiers for unique.

Mondegreens are most common in music lyrics. There are entire websites devoted to misunderstood music lyrics.

As a six year old I wondered everyday what a jalegence was .

patriciae

In advance I wish to say That I am sorry if I say things that my bother you. I did not mean to. I under stand why they do, and I also have a few. I do not use the ones given, but I am sure I use many others. BUT to me it is not the way the words are said, it is how they are spoken. Please under stand I am not trying to pick on any one, just saying I know I must do many of the things you have brought to light , and wish to say I am sorry for doing them and will( not meaning to)

I've never understood why it is uninhibited instead of just hibited.

I was a weird kid. I loved to diagram sentences! On the other hand, my spelling is weak.

There's an unfortunate trend of making nouns into verbs. (You GIVE a gift. You don't GIFT it. It's even worse to the ear in the past tense: GIFTED!)

Clear communication is important to clear understanding. We make fun of the French for rigorously defending their language against corruption, but I think they are right. A common tongue is of great importance to a community. I feel an uncomfortable 'division' where two languages are necessary within one community. Those 'pots' have not 'melted'.

"very unique" bugs me. It's either unique or is isn't.

Greenshoekitty, please, don't sweat it. These threads are meant to be light-hearted fun. We ALL do something that annoys someone else. 😄 I am guilty of several listed already.

This is just a fun way of yelling into the void.

Patriciae -took me a minute to get it - your “…wondered everyday...” finally gave me a light bulb moment! 😁

half mast

One cues a guy to a wardrobe malfunction by telling him his flag is at half mast. But one never sees an alert for an unzipped zipper as 'half staff'. I wonder why that is.

Must needs - I don't even know what that is supposed to mean. 😄 I understand it in the context of course. But the actual composition of that phrase makes no sense to me.

" In defense of hot water heater there are more than one kind of heater as in oil or gas or electric. "

I disagree. Devices that heat water for structural heating are called "boilers". Whether oil, electricity, gas or even wood powered. Yes, those exist. Not 'hot water boilers", just boilers.

Devices that produce domestic hot water are called "water heaters".

It's unlikely to find a manufacturer or seller of water heating equipment of whatever type adding the word "hot" to what its product is called.

Adding "hot" to "heater" is redundant.

I grew up using the term (mimicking my mother) of taking something from the freezer to "unthaw." Finally learned the correct term, but sometimes my brain defaults to unthaw.

I was impressed when I noticed that a local grocery directs the self-checkouts as for "10 items or fewer."

Apostrophes for plural make me sad. I initially assumed it's a recent thing related to autocorrect on "smart" devices but I became aware it has been happening for much longer after I've seen occurrences that date many years ago.

Mondegreen. Now I have a word for it. As a child, my DM sang a curious old hymn about "Gladly, My Crosseyed Bear".

patriciae Jalegence??? Not getting that one...

I still remember when as a child and new reader I came across the word con - science....had no idea it was conscience. A gal I knew talked about dee-ter-mined not realizing it was determined. English is one tough language!

As for childhood misunderstandings, for the longest time as a little kid I was puzzled that there was a singer who often appeared on TV whose name was Dyno Saur.

And later, always felt bad about the unfortunate lyrics in ABBA's Dancing Queen and figured it as a result of Swedish composers writing in English:

Friday night and the lights are low

Looking out for a place to go

Where they play the white music

Getting in the swing,

etc

""What fates impose, that men must needs abide; It boots not to resist both wind and tide" from Henry VI, Part 3

"I pleg jalegence to the flag" and it got worse after that, How about Forwichitstan? I did not go to kindergarten and maybe that is where they explained the words and my teacher was an unkind person who thought I was stupid and said so, I didnt ask. This is the person who taught "Look Say" known today as the now disparaged "Whole Language" who I blame for not being able to spell.

patriciae

We live in Cleveland, on Lake Erie. When my youngest son was little he would ask if we were driving by Uncle Gary’s lake. 😊

KW, “Who’s Attle”…LOL! Your mention of the Pledge of Allegiance made me remember this (and, yes, I remember reciting it every morning at school). As a child, I thought the Star Spangled Banner began with ”Jose, can you see…” So funny; I remember wondering who Jose was.😵‍💫

I was impressed when I noticed that a local grocery directs the self-checkouts as for "10 items or fewer."

Funny I’ve never really noticed what any of these signs say except for the number.

@foas, I 100% agree with you re hot water heater, however as a kid I probably said it until I understood what I was actually saying. Same with unthaw. I heard people say it, but quickly realized that isn’t correct.

Ally De, one of my pet peeves as well. and don’t even get me started on the over abuse of gift and gifted instead of give/gave/given.

I can recall reading something to my mother one day and ran across the word Colonel. I knew the word colonial, so attempted it as Co-Lone’-el. She corrected me of course and I never forgot that one. Most of the double emphasis words don’t bother me as much.

Speaking of all these mis-pronounced things as kids….DD, DGD and I were talking about these from our family recently. Do any of you know the singer Abra Cabean? (answer at end). or what is puferm? or a rubberdan? I could go on but that’s enough.

Avril Lavigne (Skater Boy was a song DGD sang along with)

Perfume (according to DD as a child)

BandAid (also named by DD; we think she got them confused with rubber bands)

Outside Playing, it’s Sk8er Boi. 🤠 I know, goofy!

Her name is Avril Lavigne

I remember coming across the word picturesque as a kid and pronouncing it as picture-skew.

Roxsol, autocorrect got me on Avril! And i just wrote in Skater Boy because most may not have even heard of it.

A few lyrics for the mondegreen fans…

“She was a fax machine, she kept her modem clean. She was the best damn woman that I've ever seen. ~" AC/DC

"She's a good girl. Loves her llama. Loves Cheez-its and America too" ~ Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers.

"I left some brains down in Africa " ~Toto

"Hold me closer Tony Danza" ~Elton John

One of the best mondegreens IMO is from the Eagles' "Takin' It Easy":

"...lookin' for a lover who won't blow my brother..."

One of the best mondegreens IMO is from the Eagles' "Takin' It Easy":
"...lookin' for a lover who won't blow my brother..."

ROFLMAO!!

When I was around middle school age my friend's sister couldn't understand how they could play a song with the lyrics "I'm your p*nis" on the radio. 😂

I always wondered if Elton John's Tiny Dancer had a busy day today? or visitor today. Maybe both?? Ha-ha.

"Bad Moon Rising"- 'There's a bathroom on the right'.

Shakespeare uses "must needs" in All's Well that Ends Well:

“My poor body, madam, requires it: I am driven on by the flesh; and he must needs go that the devil drives”.

It was a long time that I thought "Smoke on the Water" was "Slow Comin' Water" which was why there was fire in the sky...they couldn't get the water there fast enough...

Turned on the TV this a.m. to get the weather and saw an ad from a local plumbing company that sold "water heaters".... no "hot".

And UPC code is another redundancy.

Young Rascals - Groovin

”Life would be ecstasy, you and me endlessly”

Who’s Leslie?

Including Rudolph, Santa has nine reindeer.

Oh, and then there’s Olive.

Olive the other reindeer. She used to laugh and call Rudolph names. 🙁

So, ten reindeer in total.

Michael Jackson - Billie Jean

A friend of mine was adamant the line “But the kid is not my son…” was ”But CHAD is not my son.” It does sound that way but I could never convince her otherwise.

Chloe - same! I only learned that it was 'endlessly' several years ago 😄

My name is Carol. Some years ago, a little boy @ play camp thought my name was Harold - I did not correct him right away because I thought it was so funny 😃

This thread is jam-packed with comments

@terezosa / terriks, my DD thought the same thing when she was young!