You're saying that wrong...

Heard this one today from Ben Shapiro.

He and many others say "on tender hooks..", but the real term is " on tenterhooks ".

Not that this is commonly used, but many "edumacated" folks that sell their talk like to stylize their speech with obscure idioms.
 
mqqn said:
Heard this one today from Ben Shapiro.

He and many others say "on tender hooks..", but the real term is " on tenterhooks ".

Not that this is commonly used, but many "edumacated" folks that sell their talk like to stylize their speech with obscure idioms.
Click to expand...
That’s a new one to me, thanks. For anyone interested in the English language and how we use it, I listen to a podcast called “A Way With Words” when I’m on a road trip. Highly recommended.

They have segments where callers call in from different regions, often asking where a term or phrase originated, and 9/10 times they can pinpoint it and give the history.
 
Iron. I pronounce it "eye-urn". Am I saying it wrong?

EDIT: There goes English again.

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Up here RN is Registered Nurse.
 
Being in Va, the town of Staunton is pronounced Stan-ton but many pronounce it STON-ton. Also Thomas Jefferson’s home near Charlottesville, is named Monticello ( sounds like Montachello ) but it makes me cringe when I hear it pronounced like Montisello.
 
Goose 7279 said:
not sure if it's mentioned but I have one I'm guilty of and it's pronouncing the word crayon like crown
Click to expand...

I just said "coloring crowns" to get the idea... sounds like a southern state thing?
 
"Cut my teeth". So we know the expression means something we tried for the first time, or were still new at, especially when we were young enough to have teeth coming in. But sheesh, the gums get cut, not the teeth! Oh well this is just how everyone says it, so I guess I have no choice! 🤣
 
Not really mispronounced, but the expression “Bless your heart!” has been misapplied. I am from Northern Va, so not really southern but I thought it means well I’m sorry that happened to you, i have empathy for you. Others have stated that it is really a genteel southern way of saying your dumb as a rock and you get what you deserve.:)
 
I always understood it as a way of acknowledging someone's naive innocence.
 
It can be used both ways, hence the “cleverness” of using it in a derogatory manner.

Subject change: I just had a nursing college test where the professor misspelled one of the words in the “correct” answer. I chose the second best answer based on that, and got it wrong. If you know nursing school, there are often a couple right answers, but one is a little more correct.

Met with the instructor today about it (every point counts tremendously), and she wouldn’t budge, said I should have assumed what was meant. I’m going to take the issue higher up. If we are expected to be precise in our analysis, they should be precise in their questions.
 
jux t jux t Did the spelling actually matter?
ie post nasal vs post natal, saline vs saltine, O2 Sat vs O2 Stat, contusion vs confusion?
Was the misspelling still a word, or was it an obvious typo?
 
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