Are you justified?
Inspired by Dave Gorman, I decided to make a list of common eggcorns, including those I've actually encountered other people using in my daily life.
What's an eggcorn, you may ask? An eggcorn is what happens when someone hears a phrase without ever seeing it written down, so when it comes time for them to write it down, they write it how they think it sounds, which is often different to what it actually is. The word itself comes from someone writing "acorn" as "eggcorn" - somehow they got through their whole life without ever seeing the word "acorn" written down.
I'm going to split these into three categories - ones that people really need to stop using, ones that I can forgive people for still using (but not after learning the truth here), and ones that I actually find pretty funny.
Eggcorns You Really Need to Stop Using
"Paper view" for "pay-per-view". My ex girlfriend used to say this all the time, and even when I corrected her she insisted it was "paper view". What the heck is a paper view? You don't view any kind of paper (and if you do, then you really need to get out more). It's pay-per-view, as in you pay per (for each) viewing of the TV programme, film, whatever.
"Doggy dog world" for "dog-eat-dog world". This is apparently very common on Twitter, if Dave Gorman is to be believed (and he usually is). The phrase "dog-eat-dog world" makes perfect sense - it's a world where dogs eat other dogs, so it's a struggle to survive and be the eater rather than the eaten. Doggy dog... doesn't really mean anything.
"Toot sweet" for "tout de suite". I know some of you may have an aversion to French, but come on. "Tout de suite" is French for "immediately". It may be (roughly) pronounced "toot sweet" (actually it's more like "tood sweet"), but it's not spelled that way.
"For all intensive purposes" instead of "for all intents and purposes". It means for any possible reason, not for any intense reason.
"Could of, would of, should of" for "could've, would've, should've". Yes, I know some people do clearly pronounce it "could of", etc. No, that doesn't mean it should be written that way. And if you're saying it like that because you actually think that's what it is, as opposed to just having an accent that makes you pronounce it that way, then stop it. "Could've" is a shortened form of "could have". "Could of" makes no sense at all.
"Common" for "come on". This one is really annoying, particularly since "common" is a whole other world - and a common one, at that. If you really have to abbreviate it, use "c'mon".
"One foul swoop" for "one fell swoop". "Foul" and "fell" mean pretty much the same thing (in this context), but "fell" is the correct phrase.
Eggcorns I Could Forgive You for Using Before
"Spitting image" for "spit and image". This one is so common it might actually be a language shift in progress. "Spit" and "image" mean roughly the same thing, i.e. that one thing/person/etc. looks identical to another, so it's a case of repeating yourself for the sake of emphasis.
Eggcorns That Are Actually Pretty Funny
"Dire rear" for "diarrhoea". Hilariously apt.
What's an eggcorn, you may ask? An eggcorn is what happens when someone hears a phrase without ever seeing it written down, so when it comes time for them to write it down, they write it how they think it sounds, which is often different to what it actually is. The word itself comes from someone writing "acorn" as "eggcorn" - somehow they got through their whole life without ever seeing the word "acorn" written down.
I'm going to split these into three categories - ones that people really need to stop using, ones that I can forgive people for still using (but not after learning the truth here), and ones that I actually find pretty funny.
Eggcorns You Really Need to Stop Using
"Paper view" for "pay-per-view". My ex girlfriend used to say this all the time, and even when I corrected her she insisted it was "paper view". What the heck is a paper view? You don't view any kind of paper (and if you do, then you really need to get out more). It's pay-per-view, as in you pay per (for each) viewing of the TV programme, film, whatever.
"Doggy dog world" for "dog-eat-dog world". This is apparently very common on Twitter, if Dave Gorman is to be believed (and he usually is). The phrase "dog-eat-dog world" makes perfect sense - it's a world where dogs eat other dogs, so it's a struggle to survive and be the eater rather than the eaten. Doggy dog... doesn't really mean anything.
"Toot sweet" for "tout de suite". I know some of you may have an aversion to French, but come on. "Tout de suite" is French for "immediately". It may be (roughly) pronounced "toot sweet" (actually it's more like "tood sweet"), but it's not spelled that way.
"For all intensive purposes" instead of "for all intents and purposes". It means for any possible reason, not for any intense reason.
"Could of, would of, should of" for "could've, would've, should've". Yes, I know some people do clearly pronounce it "could of", etc. No, that doesn't mean it should be written that way. And if you're saying it like that because you actually think that's what it is, as opposed to just having an accent that makes you pronounce it that way, then stop it. "Could've" is a shortened form of "could have". "Could of" makes no sense at all.
"Common" for "come on". This one is really annoying, particularly since "common" is a whole other world - and a common one, at that. If you really have to abbreviate it, use "c'mon".
"One foul swoop" for "one fell swoop". "Foul" and "fell" mean pretty much the same thing (in this context), but "fell" is the correct phrase.
Eggcorns I Could Forgive You for Using Before
"Spitting image" for "spit and image". This one is so common it might actually be a language shift in progress. "Spit" and "image" mean roughly the same thing, i.e. that one thing/person/etc. looks identical to another, so it's a case of repeating yourself for the sake of emphasis.
Eggcorns That Are Actually Pretty Funny
"Dire rear" for "diarrhoea". Hilariously apt.
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