Why do people use phrases they don't understand?

[CZroe]

You should of bought my grammar book win it was still for sell. It's not new, per say, 'cuz I only pretended to use it in my English class so it has some folded pages and food stuck inside but it's like, literally, "new" because I technically NEVAR used it except that one time I needed it to flatten a crinkled $1 bill!!!11one

 

[CZroe]

I see people saying "on purpose" to describe a clear act of negligence all the time when there is no way they could know the other person's intentions and logic would suggest exactly the opposite (why would someone do something brazenly that they could get in trouble for and only causes themselves grief as well?). I'm pretty sure that they think "on purpose" means "without care" unless they are just too stupid to realize that purposeful action requires motivation.

"That car hit that motorcycle on purpose! I saw it! They came right out and hit it!" - Err, because the driver just decided he wanted to murder someone that day? Ugh.

 

[Ichinisan]

I see people saying "on purpose" to describe a clear act of negligence all the time when there is no way they could know the other person's intentions and logic would suggest exactly the opposite (why would someone do something brazenly that they could get in trouble for and only causes themselves grief as well?). I'm pretty sure that they think "on purpose" means "without care" unless they are just too stupid to realize that purposeful action requires motivation.

"That car hit that motorcycle on purpose! I saw it! They came right out and hit it!" - Err, because the driver just decided he wanted to murder someone that day? Ugh.

Saying "on purpose" is almost always incorrect anyway. You should say "intentionally."

 

[hzl eyed grl]

Hzl, you must of hurt his self of steam...That sort of think can happen when we take it for granite that people understand colloquialisms.
Irregardless of his understanding though, in no way should the term "wet blanket" be thought of as a true fiscal dampening...but merely meta fouracal.

LOL If I wasn't sofa king tired, eyed thing of a nice respondance.

 

[Ichinisan]

Hzl, you must of hurt his selfish team...That sort of think can happen when we take it for granite that people understand colloquialisms.
Irregardless of his understanding though, in no way should the term "wet blanket" be thought of as a true fiscal dampening...but merely meta fouracal.

FTFY

 

[Wyndru]

denial and error

 

[Ichinisan]

denial and error

Try all and air.

 

[cherrytwist]

Reminds me of this KITH skit:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dr_3S4GcZNo

 

[Ichinisan]

Anyone remember the MADtv or SNL skit with a bunch of ignorant elitists drinking wine and trying to talk intelligently? It was hilarious!

I've searched for an hour and can't find ANYTHING.

If it was MADtv, it would have Michael McDonald in it. If it was SNL, it would have been Will Ferrell.

[edit]
After hours of research (even before I posted this), I've concluded that it was a sketch in season 11, episode 3. It seems that there's no way to buy or watch this episode.

 

[zinfamous]

I was noting the two words ("another runner") foghorn67 omitted from the lyric; he's the one who supplied the word at issue.

FWIW, It's very clearly "deuce" in the Springsteen original, but Manfred Mann's version sounds distinctly different.

yeah, this is a classically misunderstood lyric, that most people recognize.

A few others:

"Hold my closer, Tony Danza."

"Big Old Jed had a light on!"

 

[CallMeJoe]

yeah, this is a classically misunderstood lyric, that most people recognize.
A few others:
"Hold my closer, Tony Danza."
"Big Old Jed had a light on!"

We could start an entirely new thread on mondegreens.

"I can tell you
My love for you will still be strong
After the Poison Summer has gone"

 

[CZroe]

Anyone remember the MADtv or SNL skit with a bunch of ignorant elitists drinking wine and trying to talk intelligently? It was hilarious!

I've searched for an hour and can't find ANYTHING.

If it was MADtv, it would have Michael McDonald in it. If it was SNL, it would have been Will Ferrell.

[edit]
After hours of research (even before I posted this), I've concluded that it was a sketch in season 11, episode 3. It seems that there's no way to buy or watch this episode.

Every couple of years I search for it too and have mentioned it more than once here. S11 ep3 of MadTV I assume? Yeah, because that would be a "classic" ep is SNL and I know it wasn't that old.

 

[manimal]

can the resident hillbiliies tell me what the f*ck" a horse a piece" means?


are we cutting the horse in half? Is the horse getting cloned? WTGDF

 

[CZroe]

Full-proof

 

[Wyndru]

To some extend

 

[Sadaiyappan]

Because they are Indian (or some other foreigner) and their understanding of english sucks. And if you don't understand English properly you don't really get how Americans think and you make all kinds of foolish assumptions. Some Indians seem to speak English okay but their writing sucks.

 

[MotionMan]

Because they are Indian (or some other foreigner) and their understanding of english sucks. And if you don't understand English properly you don't really get how Americans think and you make all kinds of foolish assumptions. Some Indians seem to speak English okay but their writing sucks.

No. I hear this more often from people who were born in the U.S. On a related note, I have heard it more from blacks than any other race/nationality (some judges can hardly hide their desire to laugh when they hear it).

MotionMan

 

[dwell]

"I'd doesn't jive"

It's jibe dammit.

http://www.randomhouse.com/wotd/index.pperl?date=20000711

 

[PlasmaBomb]

Because they are "teh suck"

<--- Doesn't know what that means.

Do you know what anything on the internet actually means?

 

[PlasmaBomb]

heh-heh...my dad (first step dad) served in the Korean War. He always said, "When the kimchee hits the fan." I grew up thinking kimchee was the Korean word for shit...imagine my surprise later when I found out what it really was...

Kimchi?

 

[IGBT]

don't forget the "basically" and "like" parrots.

 

[caddlad]

can the resident hillbiliies tell me what the f*ck" a horse a piece" means?


are we cutting the horse in half? Is the horse getting cloned? WTGDF

It means "the same either way" of "there is no difference between the two options.

The root is a discussion of two different ways to get to the same place when horses were the primary means of transport. You could only ride for so long before the distance traveled exhausted the horse, requiring you to switch horses.

Hence two different routes of equal distance and/or difficulty are "a horse apiece".

 

[Lean L]

Just saw another example of misuse. Catch 22 - This means being in an undesirable state and the only way to get out of the situation is to not have been in the situation to begin with.

It is not synonymous with ironic.

 

[Ninjahedge]

Prime examples:

Per se (and all the misspelled variations)
ignorant
'intensive purposes'
technically
literally
catch 22
ironic

Learn the language before spouting nonsense please.

Technically speaking, people usually do not understand the import of what they are saying, per se. They are ignorant, for all intensive purposes, of the true meaning of the catch-phrases they spot and ironically find themselves in a catch 22 when they misrepresent their case while trying to sound well versed.

It is literally imbecilic that they construe any form of cognizant understanding of the euphemisms they employ in their efforts to convey an inherent sense of erudite familiarity with the subject they are attempting to address.


And you know, its all that and a bag of chips.

 

[Ninjahedge]

Thank god for spellcheck!